The elements of armor exhibited here represent parts parts of several closely related garnitures, the etched ornament of which can be attributed to the Augsburg etcher Jörg Sorg the Younger. Three similar armors made for Spanish knights in 1551 and 1553 were recorded in Sorg's pen-and-wash album of armor designs that is now preserved in the Württembergische Landesbibliothek, Stuttgart. The numerous exchange and reinforcing pieces indicate that the armor was adaptable for use not only in battle but also in several forms of tournament.
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Artwork Details
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Title:Portions of an Armor Garniture
Etcher:Jörg Sorg the Younger (German, Augsburg, ca. 1522–1603)
Date:ca. 1550–55, some etched decoration, 19th century
Geography:Augsburg
Culture:German, Augsburg
Medium:Steel, gold, leather, velvet
Classification:Armor
Credit Line:Rogers Fund, 1904
Accession Number:04.3.280
[Ancient Armour and Arms recently received from Spain sale, Christie & Manson, London, February 26, 1840, no. 101, “a tilting breastplate, the lower part of a helmet, with gorget, an elbow, and a left gauntlet, engraved with lion’s masks”]; Ralph Bernal, London (until d. 1854; his estate sale, The Celebrated Collection of Works of Art…of that distinguished collector, Ralph Bernal, Esq, Christie & Manson, London, March 5–April 30, 1855, no. 2709, for £315, to Londesborough); Albert Denison, 1st Lord Londesborough, Tadcaster, Yorkshire, England (1855–d. 1860; by descent to his son, the 1st Earl of Londesborough); William Henry Forester Denison, 1st Earl of Londesborough, Tadcaster, Yorkshire, England (1860–88; Armour and Arms…of the Right Hon. Earl of Londesborough, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, July 4–9, 1888, no. 145, sold for 1000 gns, to Bachereau); [Bachereau, Paris, 1888–before 1901]; Charles Maurice Camille de Talleyrand-Périgord, Duc de Dino, Paris (by 1901–04; sold to MMA).
London. South Kensington Museum. "Special Exhibition of Works of Art of the Medieval, Renaissance and More Recent Periods," June, 1862.
London. Alexandra Palace. "Londesborough Collection of Arms and Armour," 1875, nos. 829–832.
Christie, Manson & Woods. A Catalogue of ... Armour and Arms: Recently Received from Spain ... Also ... Bronze and Marble Busts and Figures. London: Christie, Manson & Woods, February 26, 1840. lot 102.
Oxenham & Sons. Ancient Armour and Arms, Celebrated As the Gothic Armoury, Cap-a-Pie Suits of Knights' Armour, Engraved Tilting Suits, Indian Armour and Arms, Together with the Remainder of the Paraphernalia of the Grand Tournment at Eglinton. London: Oxenham & Sons, April 29–May 1, 1841. no. 290: “A very splendid suit of engraved cap-a-pie armor for a knight, of the date of Henry VIII.; it is furnished with a magnificent tilting helmet, with mentoniere attached, and a complete and massive appareil du tournois, (from the Royal Armory of Segovia.)”.
Christie, Manson & Woods. Illustrated Catalogue of the Distinguished Collection of Works of Art and Vertu from the Byzantine Period to that of Louis Seize, Collected by the late Ralph Bernal, Esq.. London: Christie's, London, March 5–April 30, 1855. p. 232, no. 2709.
Fairholt, Frederick, and Thomas Wright. Miscellanea graphica: representations of ancient, medieval, and renaissance remains in the possession of Lord Londesborough. London: Chapman and Hall, 1857. Pl. XLIII (and 2 figs. in text).
Victoria and Albert Museum. Catalogue of the Special Exhibition of Works of Art of the Mediæval, Renaissance, and More Periods, edited by Sir John Charles Robinson. London: H. M. Stationery Office, 1862. no. 4673.
Chaffers, William. Catalogue of the Londesborough Collection of Arms and Armour: with a Descriptive Account of the Antiquities and Works of Art, the Property of Lord Londesborough. London: Harrison and Sons, 1875. p. 32, nos. 829–832.
Cosson, Charles Alexander. Le Cabinet d'Armes de Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, Duc de Dino. Paris: E. Rouveyre, 1901. p. 15, no. A.6, pl. IV, ill.
Laking, Guy Francis, Sir, Charles Alexander Cosson, and Francis Henry Cripps-Day. A Record of European Armour and Arms Through Seven Centuries. Vol. III. London: G. Bell and Sons, 1920. pp. 311–313, fig. 1068, ill.
Cripps-Day, Francis Henry. A Record of Armour Sales, 1881–1924. London: G. Bell and Sons, 1925. p. 13, no. 145.
Grancsay, Stephen V. "Swords from the Dresden Armory." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin (February 1929), p. 98 (Mentioned for comparison with Greenwich armor etching designs.).
Thomas, Bruno. "Die Harnischgarnitur Maximilians II. von Jörg Seusenhofer (Innsbruck 1549/50)." Belvedere: Monatsschrift für Sammler und Kunstfreunde 13 pp. 73–82.
Mann, James G. "The Etched Decoration of Armour: A Study in Classification." Proceedings of the British Academy (1940), p. 13 (MMA endorsed crescent armor noted among pieces decorated in manner of Jorg Sorg).
Christie, Manson & Woods. Collection of Armour and Arms, Carvings in Ivory. London: Christie, Manson & Woods, July 4–6 and July 9–11, 1888. lot 145 (1000 guineas).
Jörg Sorg the Younger (German, Augsburg, ca. 1522–1603)
ca. 1550–55, some etched decoration, 19th century
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