I would like to begin a very detailed survey of surviving harnesses from the latter half of the 15th century. I should be very clear about this definition since this could become a very long list. Stylistically, I would like to confine this list to homogenous harnesses (excluding tournament harnesses), between 1450 and 1490 or thereabouts. I would like to compile a list about the artifact, its location, and it’s catalogue number. Perhaps we can include elegantly composed harnesses of associated components. If anyone can suggest a better system, or find this not worthwhile, please let me know. I also don’t expect that the people with the most extensive libraries exhaustively research these topics unless they are so very inclined.

A problem I have is that I will continue to live in Germany for some time yet, while my library remains in the U.S. Perhaps with some dialog on this discussion board we can compose a starter list of artifacts, it would certainly benefit more people than myself. I expect this can begin casually, from memory to see where this goes.

The obvious starting point would be the harnesses from Museo Diocesano Gonzaga in Mantua, the Madonna delle Grazie armours. From memory these harnesses and components range from 1470 to the first decade or so of the 16th century. If I recall there are seven more or less complete harnesses.

There is a harness in Udine, the one with the dandy horns. I don’t have any information on this harness.

I do not have information on harnesses in Schloss Churburg, Stibbert Collection, Museo Civico in Brescia, Doge’s Palace in Venedig, Bargello in Firenze.

Moving North, I believe there is at least one Milanese harness in Armerie Reale in Turin.

There are at least two harnesses in Switzerland. I don’t know what is in Innsbruck, but I don’t believe there is anything there from this period.

The Kunsthistorisches Museum in Wien has 3 very complete, homogenous Italian harnesses. (San Severino (sp) harness)

I have not yet visited the Dresden or Berlin armouries.

I don’t believe that the musee d’larmee has anything that would qualify for this list, am uncertain of what is in spain with the exception of one very unique harness in castel Montjuic.

Leeds? Wallace collection?

There is the Churburg harness in the Scott collection.

Russia remains a great mystery to me, though I imagine it highly unlikely that anything Italian found its way there.

Across the Atlantic there are two harnesses in the MET; though neither is on display. One was supposedly the earliest homogenous harness, the one with the peculiar wing incorporated with the vambrace. The other was composed of pieces from Rhodes. I would love to know more about these harnesses, and their whereabouts.

That is a quick start from memory, would anyone like to contribute? Research is difficult over here and I look forward to tracking down these artifacts in person soon. Are there any privately owned harnesses that people know about?

The horned suit - 'The Devils Mask' appears in Boccias work on the Madonna Del Grazzi harness, I think that is a comparitively recent find - second half of the 20th century, rather than first half like Manns find.

I rthink it would be fantastic to catalog everything - the problem is if you limit it to truely homogenous harness, you will have a very short list. I believe some of the MDG(for short) suits are composites, but obviusly associated from working life.

There is the Grandson harness you mentioned in Switzerland, there is HM 11 in Berne, which is a cuirasse entire sans tassets. There are a couple of individual items boccia never got to catalog - a armet with a visera sana that appears in Laking, but dissapeared into a private collection years ago.

There are two composite harnesses that appear in "The Medieval Soldier" in a private collection - one is definately a cobbling job, while the other seems more complete. You would have Gerry Embleton or John Howe to find out about those - most private collectors are somewhat wary of opening up their collecions, for fear of theft. I suspect there is a wealth of dissasociated pieces in private hands that could further the sudy of the subject - very possibly more than are in museums proper, but tracking them down for cataloging could be a monumental - if not impossible task.

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The second suit is near complete, again, mid to late 1440's, and belonged to Ulrich von Matsch, who was well over 6' tall, and apparently from the harness an ambulatory wall. It is complete, sans helmet, with a frogmouthed bascinet on top that doesn't belong to it. The gauntlets are apparently a few years earlier in manufacture, but made for the same individual. In fact, the Churbug armour shows how a family of minor nobility would update and revamp harness to keep them going for a while. There is of course the composite Churburg 18, with parts daing from the 1390's to 1420's (shoulder defences 1440's)- but the breatplate is an excellent example of the practise, a simple breastplate c 1390, that has had a back[late, plackart and faulds added to it in th course of it's working life.

BTW - the RA has an armet from the churburg - if you check out on this armour boards topic list, you will see a photo of the original and a reproduction made by Robert MacPherson for Jeff Johnson. This armet is said in th latest Churburg catalog to possibly be th one original to the 'Avan't harness in th Scott collection in Glasgow, whic currently sports an infentry bascinet - one oif a half dozen the armoury had till it sold some off between wars. They stuffed it ontop of the avant harness so it would be 'complete' when they sold it to Mr. Scott in 1938.

There are several largely Italian composites in the RA - I'm not sure if they have a complete Italian harness in the Wallace collection.

As I think of more, I'll add to the list. I'll try to provide caalog numbers when I can.

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The Grandson Harness you refer to must be the one with the Grand Bascinet, correct?

All the 4 suits of armour that appear in "The Medieval Soldier" 2 italian and 2 german are all located i belive in the Klingenberg collection in Berlin,Germany.
The Largest and finest collection in Germany in private hands.
A few years ago i spoke to Jerry Embleton about it, he told me that the collection contains armour/items we have never seen before, so one day...

Thanks very much for enlightening us as to which collecion those suits are in - I've been wondering for 6 years now. I would love to see what else is in the collection pertaining to 15th century harness. I am told that what is still in private hands still approximaely equals extant items in Museums.

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You need to browse the auction catalogue!!! There are a number of 1470 pieces in there plus a circa Italian 1500 Brigandine.

There was a late 15thC crannequin of a beautiful design. I wish I had known... snif!!