  About the Artwork
  
  
  This armor, the heaviest in the Detroit Institute of Arts’ collection, was made for use in a range of tournament events held at the court of the Electors of Saxony in Dresden, present-day Germany. The wingnut that protrudes conspicuously from the face defense locks the helmet in place. Large threaded screws bolt together the throat defense and the double-layered breastplate. Thick steel plates reinforce the left shoulder and elbow to protect against heavy blows from a right-handed opponent.  
Despite the festive atmosphere that surrounded knightly sports, there were real dangers associated with jousts (contests between two mounted contestants armed with lances) and free tournaments (mock battles between teams of knights wielding lances, blunted swords, or clubs). Armorers like the brothers Wolf and Peter von Speyer developed sophisticated safety features to prevent injuries in the arena. This armor, a testament to their craftsmanship, successfully protected generations of knights for over 130 years. The inside of its backplate is inscribed with the name of its last wearer, Caspar von Lesgewang, who donned the armor for a tournament in 1719, long after the golden age of armor and tournaments had ended.
  
  
  Title
  Armor for the Joust and Free Tournament
  
  
  Artwork Date
  ca. 1580 - 1590
  
  
  
  
  Makers
  
  
  Workshop of Peter von Speyer the Younger  (Artist)
  German, died after 1619
  Workshop of Wolf Peppinghorn  (Artist)
  German, active 1575 - 1600
  Workshop of Wolf von Speyer  (Artist)
  German, active ca. 1560 - 1580
  
  
  
  Medium
  Steel, leather
  
  
  Dimensions
  Overall (As Displayed): 70 1/2 × 30 × 17 7/8 inches (179.1 × 76.2 × 45.4 cm)
  
  
  Classification
  Arms and Armor
  
  
  Department
  European Sculpture and Dec Arts
  
  
  Credit
  Gift of William Randolph Hearst Foundation
  
  
  
  Accession Number
  
  
  
  This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection.
  Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings.
  For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups.
  
  
  
  53.197
  
  
  Copyright
  Public Domain
