Sir John Scudamore (1541 or 1542–1623) was appointed a Gentleman Pensioner by Queen Elizabeth I (reigned 1558–1603) in 1571 or 1572 and knighted in 1592. This armor probably was commissioned by him in preparation for the threatened Spanish invasion of England in 1588. It was made in the royal workshops at Greenwich during the tenure of Jacob Halder (documented in England 1558–1608) as master armorer.
The remains of this and the later Scudamore armor for his son James (Metropolitan Museum of Art,accession number 11.128.2) were found, badly damaged and incomplete, in 1909, in Holme Lacy, the ancestral home of the Scudamores. The armors were restored and completed in The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1915, by the armorer Daniel Tachaux. The parts made by Tachaux include the helmet, left pauldron (shoulder defense), gauntlets, and right sabaton (foot defense).
This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
Open Access
As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.
API
Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.
This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.
3/4 right
Front
Back
Artwork Details
Use your arrow keys to navigate the tabs below, and your tab key to choose an item
Title:Field Armor Probably of Sir John
Scudamore (1541 or 1542–1623)
Armorer:Made under the direction of Jacob Halder (British, master armorer at the royal workshops at Greenwich, documented in England 1558–1608)
Armorer: Helmet, left pauldron, gauntlets, and right sabaton made by Daniel Tachaux (French, 1857–1928, active in France and America) in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Armor Workshop
Date:ca. 1587, restored and completed 1915
Geography:Greenwich; New York, New York
Culture:British, Greenwich
Medium:Steel, gold, leather
Dimensions:Wt. 68 lb. 8 oz. (31.07 kg)
Classification:Armor for Man
Credit Line:armor: Frederick C. Hewitt Fund, 1911; right thigh and knee defense, and left foot defense: Fletcher Fund, 1922
Object Number:11.128.1a–p; 22.147.4a, b, .11
Ex. coll.: Armor: Sir James Scudamore and Edwyn Francis Scudamore-Stanhope, 10th Earl of Chesterfield, Holme Lacey, Herefordshire, England. Right thigh and knee defense, and left foot defense: Meyrick.
Cuisse (thigh defense) and foot defense: William Meyrick.
London. H. M. Tower of London. "Exhibition of Armour Made in the Royal Workshops at Greenwich," May 22–September 29, 1951, no. 14.
Los Angeles. Los Angeles County Museum of Art. "Loan Exhibition of Mediaeval and Renaissance Arms and Armor from the Metropolitan Museum of Art," January 15–March 18, 1953, no. 10.
San Francisco. California Palace of the Legion of Honor, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. "Loan Exhibition of Mediaeval and Renaissance Arms and Armor from the Metropolitan Museum of Art," April 18–June 7, 1953, no. 10.
Pittsburgh. Department of Fine Arts, Carnegie Institute. "Loan Exhibition of Mediaeval and Renaissance Arms and Armor from the Metropolitan Museum of Art," October 1953–April 1954, no. 10.
Meyrick, William Esq. Dr. An Illustrated Catalogue of Weapons and Detached Specimens of Armour, from the Collection of William Meyrick, Esq.. London: Joseph Clayton, 1861. nos. 98 (22.147.4a, b), 118 (22.147.11).
Knight Frank and Rutley. Contents of Holme Lacy, Near Hereford.. London: Knight Frank and Rutley, January 31–February 3, 1910. p. 34, no. 413–14.
Brown, G. Elsworth. "A Suit of Armor and a Lawsuit." Magazine of Antique Firearms (April 1911), pp. 13–14.
Dean, Bashford. "The Armor of Sir James Scudamore." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin (June 1913), pp. 118–23, fig. 1.
Dillon Viscount Dillon. "The Chesterfield Armour in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York." The Archaeological Journal (1915), pp. 75–76, ill.
Dean, Bashford. "The Armor of Sir James Scudamore." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin (March 1916), pp. 69–71, ill.
Dean, Bashford. Notes on Arms and Armor. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1916. pp. 63–68, fig. 3.
Dean, Bashford. "Notes on the Armour of Sir James Scudamore." The Archaeological Journal (1920), pp. 226–28.
Laking, Guy Francis, Charles A. de Cosson, and Francis Henry Cripps-Day. A Record of European Armour and Arms Through Seven Centuries. Vol. IV. London: G. Bell and Sons, 1920–1922. pp. 63–71, figs. 1145–49.
Christie, Manson & Woods. Meyrick Arms and Armour Being the Collection Formed About the Middle of the 19th Century by the Late Dr. William Meyrick. London: Christie, Manson & Woods, February 21, 1922. nos. 35 (22.147.4a, b), 148 (22.147.11).
Beard, Charles R. "Missing Armours: A National Portrait Gallery Discovery." The Connoisseur (1924), pp. 176–77, 181 (a similarly decorated armor depicted in a painting).
Cripps-Day, Francis Henry. A Record of Armour Sales, 1881–1924. London: G. Bell and Sons, 1925. p. 152, nos. 413–14.
Grancsay, Stephen V. "Swords from the Dresden Armory." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin (February 1929), p. 90.
Dean, Bashford, and Robert T. Nichol. Handbook of Arms and Armor : European and Oriental, edited by Stephen V. Grancsay. 4th ed. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, October 1930. p. 142, fig. 94.
Cripps-Day, Francis Henry. "An Introduction to the Study of Greenwich Armour." Fragmenta Armamentaria (1934), pp. 88–89 (Scudamore armors discussed).
Tower of London Armouries. Exhibition of Armour Made in the Royal Workshops at Greenwich, 22nd May–29th September, 1951. London: H. M. Stationery Office, 1951. no. 14, pl. XVIII.
Grancsay, Stephen V. Loan Exhibition of Mediaeval and Renaissance Arms and Armor from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1953. p. 11, no. 10, ill.
Cornforth, John. "Kent Church Court, Heredfordshire, II, The House of Mr. J. H. S. and Lady Patricia Lucas-Scudamore." Country Life (December 22, 1966), pp. 1688–91 (Scudamore family discussed).
Williams, Alan, and Anthony de Reuck. The Royal Armoury at Greenwich 1515–1649: A History of Its Technology. Royal Armouries Monograph, Vol. 4. Leeds: Trustees of the Royal Armouries, 1995. pp. 106–107, ill.
Reuck, Anthony de. "Greenwich Revisited: or Gunpowder and the Obsolescence of Armour." The Journal of the Arms and Armour Society 15, no. 7 pp. 426–43.
Williams, Alan. The Knight and the Blast Furnace: A History of the Metallurgy of Armour in the Middle Ages & the Early Modern Period. History of Warfare, Vol. 12. Leiden: Brill, 2002. pp. 794–95.
Made under the direction of Jacob Halder (British, master armorer at the royal workshops at Greenwich, documented in England 1558–1608)
ca. 1595–96; restored and completed, 1915
Resources for Research
The Met's Libraries and Research Centers provide unparalleled resources for research and welcome an international community of students and scholars.
The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can connect to the most up-to-date data and public domain images for The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.
