Shaffron thumbnail 1
On display

Shaffron

ca. 1550 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Augsburg (made)

Embossed steel with etched and gilt decoration, within a shield on the forehead the arms of the Ribera family

Object details

Category
Arms & Armour
Object type
Shaffron
Materials and techniques
embossed steel with etched and gilt decoration
Brief description
Embossed steel chanfron with etched and gilt decoration, with an escutcheon on the forehead with the arms of the Ribera family, Augsburg, ca. 1550
Physical description
Embossed steel with etched and gilt decoration, within a shield on the forehead the arms of the Ribera family
Dimensions
  • Height: 52.5cm
  • Width: 24cm
  • Depth: 10cm
  • Weight: 0.9kg
Marks and inscriptions
  • the arms of the Ribera family (within a shield on the forehead)
Gallery label
(01/07/2023)
Healthy horse

Keep any brave or accident-prone horse well-protected with this armour.

Long ago, it was worn by a horse who lived in a huge palace in Spain…

Shaffron (horse’s head armour)
Unknown maker
About 1550
Ausburg, Germany
Museum no. 616-1893

[Young V&A, Imagine Gallery, Adventure, short object label]
Object history
Said to have come from the Casa Pilatus in Seville, ex Baron de Cosson Collection

Historical significance: The design and the ordering of the etched ornament is very similar to that of a suit made at Greenwich for the Earl of Sussex ca. 1560. The double sunk border of this chanfron however, does not appear to match any designs by Jörg Sorg, who made armour for Don Andreas de Ribera in 1550. An armour in Sorg's Ätzmusterbuch is shown with similar borders and noted as having been made for 'Don Alba de Bemont Dassa'. Saddle plates from this armour are in the V&A collection (M.545-1927 & M.62-1959) but the borders are not as sketched.

Hayward, J. F., 'Some Augsburg Armours etched by Jörg Sorg', Burlington Magazine, Vol.XC, September 1948, p.253.
Bibliographic references
  • J.F. Hayward., European Armour, London, 1965, cat. 12
  • Patterson, Angus, Fashion and Armour in Renaissance Europe: Proud Lookes and Brave Attire, V&A Publishing, London, 2009, ISBN 9781851775811, p. 41, ill.
Collection
Metalwork Collection
Accession number
616-1893

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Record createdMarch 26, 2004
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O97377/shaffron-unknown/
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