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Gothic Backplate
c. 1475–1500
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
Over time the increasing effectiveness of the crossbow and longbow made steel plates necessary for protection. Around 1400 a knight was protected almost entirely by plate armor. The elements shown here (backplate and fan-shaped pauldrons), with their sculptural line, illustrate the beauty of plate armor from the Gothic age.
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Details
- Title: Gothic Backplate
- Date Created: c. 1475–1500
- Physical Dimensions: Overall: 44.5 x 34.5 x 16.5 cm (17 1/2 x 13 9/16 x 6 1/2 in.)
- Provenance: Thill, Frank Gair Macomber, Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Type: Arms and Armor
- Rights: CC0
- External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.1613
- Medium: steel, modern leather straps
- Fun Fact: This armor would have been polished mirror bright and been a spectacular sight in the sunlight.
- Department: Medieval Art
- Culture: Germany, late 15th Century
- Credit Line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance
- Collection: MED - Arms & Armor
- Accession Number: 1916.1613
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