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Gauntlet: HEN.M.20G-1933

Object information

Awaiting location update

Maker(s)

Production: Unknown

Entities

Categories

Description

Gauntlet for the left hand, of fingered form, for light field use without a vambrace. Formed of a long, flared cuff, five metacarpal-plates, a knuckle-plate, a finger-plate and four scaled finger-defences. The cuff is formed of an outer plate and a considerably shorter inner plate. The latter is riveted within the former. The outer plate is medially-ridged and rises at its upper edge to a pronounced central point. The upper edge of the cuff has a plain inward turn accompanied by a recessed border containing eleven lining-rivets. A twelfth lining-rivet is lost from the apex of the outer plate. The lower edge of the inner plate has a plain inward turn. Riveted within each side of the lower end of the outer plate is a fragment of a leather strap to fasten the gauntlet around the inside of the wrist. The lower edge of the outer plate is overlapped by a series of five medially-ridged, upward-overlapping lames that are decorated with V-shaped nicks at their centres. The lowest metacarpal-plate is overlapped by a knuckle-plate decorated with a file-roped transverse rib of boxed form. The lower edge of the knuckle-plate overlaps a finger-plate which is shaped to the fingers. The cuff, the metacarpal-plates, the knuckle-plate and the finger-plates are all connected to one another at their outer ends by round-headed rivets with octagonal internal washers. Riveted within the finger-plate are four finger-defences formed of between six and eight medially-ridged scales riveted to underlying leather strips. The third scale of the first finger appears to be replaced. Attached within the front edge of the gauntlet by the rivet that connects the fourth and fifth metacarpal-plates to one another is a fragment of the leather hinge that would have served to attach the missing thumb-defence. Part of the composite armour HEN.M.20A-H-1933.

Notes

History note: Mr James Stewart Henderson of 'Abbotsford', Downs Road, St Helen's Park, Hastings, Sussex.

Legal notes

J.S. Henderson Bequest

Measurements and weight

Depth: 13.2 cm
Height: 40.0 cm
Weight: 0.58 kg
Width: 13.3 cm

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1933-03-16) by Henderson, James Stewart

Dating

16th Century, Late
Circa 1580 CE - 1590 CE

Note

South German

The character of the turn at the upper edge of the cuff, and the acid-induced corrosion evident in its accompanying recessed border, suggest reworking, possibly to make the gauntlet better match the gauntlet HEN M.20H-1933, at one time mounted with it.

The gauntlet is bright with a light to medium patination overall.

Components of the work

Strap composed of leather ( fragments)
Thumb-defence composed of leather ( fragments)
Underlying Strips composed of leather
Cuff, Border
Cuff, Decoration
Cuff, Outer Plate
Decoration
Front Edge Gauntlet
Knuckle-plate
Parts

Materials used in production

Steel

Techniques used in production

Hammering : Formed of a long, flared cuff, five metacarpal-plates, a knuckle-plate, a finger-plate and four scaled finger-defences; hammered, shaped, riveted, with file-roped decoration
Forming

Identification numbers

Accession number: HEN.M.20G-1933
Primary reference Number: 18059
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Friday 8 January 2016 Last processed: Friday 8 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Gauntlet" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/18059 Accessed: 2024-11-15 03:37:09

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/18059 |title=Gauntlet |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-15 03:37:09|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/api/v1/objects/object-18059

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