The Armour Archive

This is based loosely on a 12 - 13 century cuir bouilli cuirass. The artwork is decidedly modern.

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I will post more pics tomorrow, once I have it strapped. I will post them with pictures of the entire harness. This commission consisted of articulated pauldrons, the cuirass, floating elbow cops, vanbraces, cuisses and demi greaves.

nice and simple, I really like it man..... very well done....

I like it. Enough to try and copy it myself.

I've been thinking of making a cuir boille breastplate, to wear either under or over a maille hauberk (it gets hot in my brigandine here in Turkey), so could you answer a few questions about the process you used?

How did you harden this piece? Water, heat and rabbit glue? Wax layer afterwards? It has a nice sheen, which could be the glue, or something else.

Wolf:

Nice work! I look forward to seeing it strapped. Hopefully I can get on to check it out tomorrow.

Yours from Iraq,
Brother Fredrik

Ceawlin wrote:I like it. Enough to try and copy it myself.

I've been thinking of making a cuir boille breastplate, to wear either under or over a maille hauberk (it gets hot in my brigandine here in Turkey), so could you answer a few questions about the process you used?

How did you harden this piece? Water, heat and rabbit glue? Wax layer afterwards? It has a nice sheen, which could be the glue, or something else.

The piece was hardened using water and heat. I sealed it with black shoe polish, then buffed it out with a polishing brush.

Uilleag, that _is_ nice but won't the boot polish rub off onto other clothing?

meaddrinker wrote:Uilleag, that _is_ nice but won't the boot polish rub off onto other clothing?

To be honest Meaddrinker, I've never noticed. I suppose it might, but my fighting clothes get so nasty with sweat, etc. a little shoe polish will go unnotticed.

I buff out the polish really well, so there isn't much to rub off onto clothing. Neutral polish could be used instead of black and that would completely alieviate the problem.

Wow... That looks totally awesome, Uilleag!

I'm still in a debate mode at to what I want to get (and where) my first SCA kit... If I see much more of this stuff rollin' outta' your imagination, I may just have my mind made up for me!

-Gregory-

Could someone post a link to a contemporary image (effigy? artwork) of a 12th or 13th century cuirass for comparison? I recall written references but I wonder what art exists.

All of the pictures I have seen of this style cuirass has been artist renditions showing what the author described. There are a few effigies, but I don't have them handy to post, and they are much more elaborately tooled.

Of course effigies make us speculate on what the armour material really was, cloth covered plate, tooled/embossed leather. Without an extant piece it will all be supposition.

Well, as promised, I am posting some pics of the cuirass, now that it is strapped, but I wanted to share pictures of the entire harness.

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Cuirass with attached articulating pauldrons.

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Front view of Cuirass with straps.

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Left side view of straps. Notice the gentle dishing of the front of the breast plate. I was hoping for a more bulbous look, but couldn't quite pull it off.

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Back view, reinforced the shoulder straps w/ 3 rivets for durability.

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Vanbraces with floating elbow cops.

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Cuisses w/ demi greaves. The client will be attaching a pair of metal knees to these.

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That is some very pretty stuff.

Everything I see of yours calls to my checkbook...

Next year I will be placing an order for some stuff.

Cheers!
~Kevin

Whot is the usual price range for leather cuirass and pauldrons likw that. Really nice. (drool)

Y'know, except for the odd (i.e., "non-Japanese looking and not placed where a Japanese armourer would place it on the armour") animal face, this looks remarkably like a hotoke do...




Effingham