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A Visit to the Armor Galleries

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Program Information

A Visit to the Armor Galleries

Program information

In the 1920s the Metropolitan began to explore filmmaking as part of its educational program, and in 1924 it released two films about arms and armor. In preparation for this new undertaking, Bashford Dean, the head of the Arms and Armor department, sought the advice of Hollywood professionals D. W. Griffith and John Barrymore. Once the scripts were complete, Dean left most of the actual work to his young assistant curators, Stephen V. Grancsay and Thomas T. Hoopes, who also appear in the films. A Visit to the Armor Galleries was especially popular and includes memorable scenes: a Gothic armor steps out of its vitrine to answer visitors' questions about the collection, a seesaw with a small child on one end and a medieval mail shirt on the other demonstrates the relatively modest weight of armor, and a fully armored knight on horseback gallops through Central Park, with Belvedere Castle (the park's weather station) rising picturesquely in the background. When actor Douglas Fairbanks Sr. viewed the film at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, he pronounced it "bully."

Dressing in Steel: Part One

Dressing in Steel: Part One
(00:37:39) 683 views

Dressing in Steel: Part Two

Dressing in Steel: Part Two
(00:20:04) 274 views

A Visit to the Armor Galleries

A Visit to the Armor Galleries
(00:30:21) 4358 views

Bashford Dean and the Creation of the Arms and Armor Department, 1904&ndash;1929

Bashford Dean and the Creation of the Arms and Armor Department, 1904–1929
(00:30:12) 226 views

The Art of Arms and Armor: Challenges of Research, Display, and Education

The Art of Arms and Armor: Challenges of Research, Display, and Education
(00:33:09) 320 views

Curators, Collectors, and Dealers: The Growth of the Arms and Armor Collection, 1929 to the Present

Curators, Collectors, and Dealers: The Growth of the Arms and Armor Collection, 1929 to the Present
(00:36:37) 207 views

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Hunting Sword

Date:
hallmarked for 1765–66
Culture:
French, Paris
Medium:
Steel, silver, agate
Dimensions:
Length overall 28 1/4 in. ( 71.76 cm) Length of blade 23 1/8 in. ( 58.72 cm) Gr. width of blade 1 1/8 in. ( 2.84 cm) Gr. thickness of blade 0 1/4 in. ( 0.64 cm) Hardness of blade 55-65
Classification:
Swords
Credit Line:
Gift of Jean Jacques Reubell, in memory of his mother, Julia C. Coster, and of his wife, Adeline E. Post, both of New York City, 1926
Accession Number:
26.145.244

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 376

40001124

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