Body Armor

This is a reconstructed portion of a full suit of armor that a Turkish soldier would have worn into battle. The chain mail that links the circular breast- and backplates to the steel plates at the sides and shoulders would have continued down over the warrior's forearms and connected with plate coverings that provided further protection from elbow to wrist. (The leather straps are modern replacements for sections of mail.) The soldier also might have been equipped with plate leg guards or with a long skirt or trousers made of mail and reinforced with additional steel plates.

The decoration of the plates features floral motifs, Arabic inscriptions (on the back) and interlaced patterns-decorative elements used throughout the history of Islamic art.

Provenance

Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.

Arsenal of Constantinople; Dikran Kelekian, New York and Paris [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1911, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.