Hungarian-Style Shield

ca. 1500–1550
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 373
This wing-shaped shield and others like it in the Metropolitan Museum's collection (42.50.30, 49.57.1), with the distinctive upward-sweeping back edge, were the characteristic light-cavalry shields of Hungary. During the sixteenth century, the style was adopted across much of eastern Europe by both Christian and Islamic horsemen. The shield's elongated upper edge was designed to defend the back of the head and neck against cuts from a saber, the preferred cavalry weapon in that region.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Hungarian-Style Shield
  • Date: ca. 1500–1550
  • Culture: Eastern European
  • Medium: Wood, leather, gesso, polychromy
  • Dimensions: H. 50 in. (127 cm); W. 17 1/2 in. (44.5 cm); D. 8 3/4 in. (22.2 cm); Wt. 8 lb. 14 oz. (4031 g)
  • Classification: Shields
  • Credit Line: Gift of Stephen V. Grancsay, 1942
  • Object Number: 42.50.29
  • Curatorial Department: Arms and Armor

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