A Complete Guide to HeraldryFox-Davies, Arthur Charles
History
A Complete Guide to Heraldry
Fox-Davies, Arthur Charles
Heraldry -- Great Britain
The manner in which the helmet was connected with the rest of the armour is
shown in Fig. 591, which is a representation of a German suit of tilting
armour of the period about 1480, now in the collection of armour at the
Royal Museum in Vienna.
Of the same character, but of a somewhat different shape, is the helmet
(Fig. 592) of Sir John Gostwick, who died in 1541, which is now in
Willington Church, Bedfordshire. The illustration here given is taken from
the _Portfolio_, No. 33. The visor opening on the right side of the helmet
is evidently taken from an Italian model.
[Illustration: FIG. 589.]
The third and last kind of helm was the "tournament helm," and was similar
to the first kind, and also called a "bascinet"; but the visor was
generally barred, or, instead of a movable visor, the bars were riveted on
the helm, and sometimes the face was only protected by a sort of wire-work,
like a fencing-mask. It was only used for the tourney or mêlée, when the
weapons were the sword and mace.
[Illustration: FIG. 590.]
The "chapelle-de-fer," which was in use in the thirteenth, fourteenth, and
fifteenth centuries, was a light iron head-piece, with a broad, flat brim,
somewhat turned down. Fig. 593 represents one belonging to the {312} end of
the fifteenth century, which is one of the few remaining, and is delicately
forged in one piece of thin, hard steel.
During the fourteenth century a new kind of helmet arose, called in England
the "sallad," or "sallet." The word appears to have two derivations, each
of which was applied to a different form of head-piece. First, the Italian
"celata" (Fig. 594), which seems originally to have been a modification of
the bascinet. Second, the German "schallern," the form of which was
probably suggested by the chapelle-de-fer. Both of these were called by the
French "salade," whence our English "sallad." The celata came lower down
than the bascinet, protected the back and sides of the neck, and, closing
round the cheeks, often left only the eyes, nose, and mouth exposed. A
standard of mail protected the neck if required. In the fifteenth century
the celata ceased to be pointed at the summit, and was curved outwards at
the nape of the neck, as in Fig. 595.
[Illustration: FIG. 593.]
The "schallern" (from _shale_, a shell, or bowl), was really a helmet and
visor in one piece; it had a slit for the eyes, a projecting brim, and a
long tail, and was completed by a chin-piece, or "bavier" (Eng. "beaver"),
which was strapped round the neck. Fig. 596 shows a German sallad and a
Spanish beaver. The sallad was much used in the fifteenth century, during
the latter half of which it often had a visor, as in one from Rhodes (Fig.
597), which has a spring catch on the right side to hold the visor in place
when down. The rivets for its lining-cap have large, hollow, twisted heads,
which are seldom found on existing sallads, though often seen in sculpture.
[Illustration: FIG. 594.]
[Illustration: FIG. 595.]
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