His grandfather was a bell-founder of Nuremberg, who made the bells for the church of S. Sebald in 1396. In 1465, after his father’s death, Hans built a large house and workshop, after much litigation with the city over his glazing or polishing mills. In 1480 he owned many houses in Nuremberg, and built the “Pilatus” house near the Thiergartner-Thor, close to the house of Albert Dürer. He worked for the Emperor Maximilian I, and was the most serious rival of the Missaglia family of Milan, who at this time were the most celebrated armourers of Europe. The mark No. 54 is ascribed by Boeheim to Grünewalt. Works bearing this mark are to be found in the Waffensammlung, Vienna, 66, 995. [Sidenote: _Daniel Hopfer_, Augsburg, _circ._ 1495-1566.] Hopfer was in the first instance a painter, a designer and maker of stained glass, and an engraver. He settled in Augsburg in 1495. According to Heller he died in 1549, but this is not borne out by the entries in the account books of Maximilian II, who employed him and his brother. In the Hofzahlantsbuch, under the date 1566, it is stated that Daniel and his brother George, both of Augsburg, were ordered by Maximilian II to make 110 new helmets for the Trabantengarde and to decorate them with engraving. Four were made in March as samples, and the remainder were to be delivered in July at a cost of 397 gulden 42 kreutzer. Much of the work of the brothers Hopfer consisted in decorating armour made by other masters, of whom Coloman Colman was the chief. In Madrid are several examples of the work of Daniel: A, 26 and 65 are horse-armours which are decorated in Hopfer’s style, and A, 27, 57 are jousting-shields which are certainly from his hand; the latter is signed and dated 1536. [Sidenote: _Conrad Lochner_, Nuremberg, 1510-67. Mark No. 46.] In 1544 Conrad, or Kuntz as he is sometimes called, was Hofplatner to Maximilian II with a retaining fee of 14 florins 10 kronen, and in 1547 Maximilian gave him a settled yearly pension. He must have given up his appointment in 1551, for we find Hans Siefert Court Armourer in this year. He was born at Nuremberg in 1510, where his father followed the trade of an armourer, and had two brothers who worked with him, but the names of the Lochners do not often appear in the royal accounts. Like most of his craft, he was frequently in money difficulties, and had great trouble in collecting his debts from the King of Poland. His works are found at Berlin, 116, a horse-armour; Paris, G, 166, 182, 565, 566; Madrid, A, 243; Dresden, E, 5 and G, 165; Vienna, 334. He frequently used tritons and sea-monsters as a motif for his decorations. [Sidenote: _Gabrielle and Francesco Merate_, Milan and Arbois, _circ._ 1494-1529. Marks, possibly 18, 51, 53.]