Has anyone of you any proof/recipe for alternatives to the usual polished surface of 15th century armour?
Problem is, whenever this subject is being talked of, you mostly receive the same hints and examples, p.e.

-the sallet from vienna, left rough from the hammer and painted

-16th century black-and-white harness, the black parts painted with some varnish that somebody knows the producer of, living someqwhere, selling varnish mixed after an ancient recipe, the price being something around $300 per litre, "...but I havenīt got the address..."

-the one photo from Gerry Embletonīs "Medieval Soldier", showing the russ-blackened italianate sallet.

-the English Civil War pre-rusted pikemanīs pots and breastplates

-the (rough) photo in Stoneīs Glossary depicting a "blackened gothic harness", which is the only example I know and to me seems like 19th cent. preservation

-Henry VIIīs armour for foot combat which was actally left rough from the hammer simply because it hasnīt been finished and polished due to a change of tournament rules while "under construction". This very example has been polished in the 19th century, was originally never intended to be left rough, but most often is used as THE example for the "fact", that medieval armour was never as shiny as period pictures show and modern reproductions usually are.

But alas, you never get anything thatīs really helpful for the period in question. I am curently working upon a 15th cent. south German town militiamanīs equipment and want it to be most accurate. The clothes will be made of wool and linen only, hand sewn with linen thread by my humble self, I made my own belt and armour buckles after museum catalogues and photos shot at museums, i even make my own cord tips. Please note, I donīt mention this to boast myself, but rather to make clear, that I am most interested in historically proven informations and not in popular reenactor hearsay or the popular modern gun-blue recipes.

So hereīs my questions:

-Does somebody know which kinds of paint were in use?

-Are there any reliable sources on the net, probably with recipes?

-Is there any proof for painted armour apart from heraldically painted helmets?

-Are there any pictures on the net of painted/rough-from-the-hammer 15th century harness?

Any helpful hint would be highly appreciated, helpful literature as well as web stuff.
Thank you so much in advance,
Regards

Ivo

--------------------

OK, off the top of my head, and discounting manuscript illustrations, for the sake of debate;

- There is a C15th German Sallet in the wallace collection with a monster face and scale pattern painted on it. Memory suggests that it wasn't much more than munition quality.

- A sallet (can't remember provenance) in the wallace collection with singularly naff painted decoration, again, pretty much munition quality.

- Two complete suits of gilded c16th plate armour in the Royal Armoury in Stockholm, one made for the funeral of one of the Kings of Sweden, another for the king's brother. A little outside your social level, but thought I'd include them anyway.

- Several embossed and inlaid suits in the royal armouries at Leeds, some treated with acid or other surface finishes so that the inlay is in a contrasting colour. Again, we're outside the level of a militiaman, but not necessarily of a knight.

- Velvet covered sallet in Royal Armouries, Leeds. Can't remember whay quality this one is, it's been ages since I've looked at it.

- I'm assuming that decorative add-ons don't count. If they do, I seem to recall there's a Sallet in the Frankfurt museum with a row of Brass rosettes around the lower rim, which look decorative rather than to hold a lining.

Neil, i believe i got a picture of the salet with the monster face on it from the Wallace Collection that you refered to in front of me. it is in Warfare in the Middle Ages ISBN# 0-792-45089-2 (typical coffee table book type, big with lots o'pictures)

Unfortunately it is in b/w so i can't tell much about the colours. it is rough from the hammer; with slits for the eyes and (mouth?) four breathing hole in a diamond patern in between. from the mouth holes are painted two tusks and eyes are painted below the eye slits. there also apears to be some scales on the cheek area. the tail of the sallet is segmented and there is no crest on the crown.

this sallet stuck in my head because it doesn't look anything like any other i've seen. in fact if someone would have made a copy and shown me i would have had trouble believing that it wasn't some type sport helm used in the SCA.

i hope this discription helps some. since it from a b/w it isn't much.

as far as blackening... i have no basis for any historical use for the following. but from my own experiments i've found that what has worked best for me has been the following.

i've used regular gun blue, selenium dioxide i think (don't quote me i'll check the bottle later to make sure) as an oxidizing agent.

DON'T FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS ON THE BOTTLE!

what i did was to apply the sollution and let it sit on the metal as an oxidizer until compleation of the full reaction; usually takes overnight. the next day there will be a brite red/orage iron oxide coat, or ferric oxide (Fe2O3) all over the applied area; THIS IS GOOD. there may be some streaking from the application which can be easily removed with a very light sanding. keep it light because you want to keep the rust in place. with a torch (i used mapp torch?) heat the metal until it glows. the added energy aids in the formation of ferrous feric oxide (Fe3O4). its physical properties are very different from the red rust, i.e. adhearse well to the metal, good cunductor, etc. and it is a dull dk. brown/gray to black (black colour indicates a compleate reaction) this layer prevents the formation of the red rust and acts as a protective coating.

there is no reason not to let the metal rust naturally. i used the oxidation agent to speed up the process a bit. plus i avoided the oil slicked metal in the oven for a day trick. is this based on any historical research? NO i used my background in chemistry and a desire to find something that worked to come up with it.

hope it helps.

daniel

--------------------

Db

The Wallace Collection sallet is reptile-green, and the whole surface apart from the monster-face on the front is covered with a scaly pattern, painted on top of the green using black lines.

Linseed oil (preferably boiled as it dries faster)

Dry pigments mixed in to achieve the desired colour.

Spilling and brushes can be cleaned with turpentine.

Linseed oil has the added bonus of being very protective against rust. It is still used for this today.

This should be as historical as it gets, especially if you take care to get pigments that were in use back then:

Iron black istead of manganese black
Lead white instead of zinc or titanium white
usw...

For safety dont breathe in too much turpentine, and throw any rags with linseed oil out of your house, they can self-ignite.

Good luck!

Anders

Neil:
The Monster Face Sallet appears in one of the "Eyewitness"- youthīs books showing only the front. To me, this helmet looks like the 16th century helmets from the Graz Armoury (the catalogue of which has been published in English, too, entitled something like "World of Iron"). I personally think this specimen is not munition quality, to judge from the quality of the paint.
As to the Black Legion...as far as I know these mercenaries, who found their end in the battle of Hemmingstedt in 1500 have rather been named after their souls than after their apparel. Iīve read about German mounted troops in the late 16th century who got a similar nickname after their black-and-white harness, which is munition quality with polished surfaces and bands painted black.
The oil-burnt black armour, as far as I know, was munition quality, not even properly quenched stuff from the late 16th/mid-17th century, very well presented in the book mentioned above.

LHF:
Thank you for the gun-blueing recipe, but- that was exactly what I did not look for.
;o)

Anders:
Yes, Linseed and dry pigments, I recently stumbled over something like this myself.
Thank you.

In case I appear not grateful or not polite enough- please donīt get mad at me, itīs been quite a while since I had to write something in English.

Iīve still got the same question- we now have collected a lot of painted-helmets. Have you got any sources telling a little more than usual of armour (in my case breast and back plate with a fauld, without a culet, italian export-style, "premium munition grade";o)) being painted or treated in some other way?

Thank you in advance,
Regards

Ivo

--------------------

The painted sallets which are under discussion here are generally considered to be from the 1490s or later, even into the 1510s. They are not so uncommon - I have seen examples in the Metropolitan Museum and in the Cleveland Museum. I cannot think of any examples of earlier painted armor, with one exception: The late 14th-century bascinet which was in the
Hefner-Alteneck collection, and later in the Hever collection sold in 1982, has painted flames or rays at both the point of the skull and the point of the visor.