"Illustrations of Italian Soldiers of the 1490s" Topic

Illustrations of Italian Soldiers of the 1490s
For the early Italian Wars, here are some contemporary illustrations of Italian Soldiers of the 1490s:
The Pilgrims' Arrival in Cologne, the Life of St Ursula, by Vittore Carpaccio, 1490-96
Martyrdom of the Pilgrims, the Life of St Ursula, by Vittore Carpaccio, 1490-96
The fight between the Bonacotsi and Gonzaga in the Piazza Sordello in Mantua, 1494, by Domenico Morone
Fresco in the Guard Room, Castello di Issogne, Val d'Aosta, north west Italy, c. 1495
Francesco II Gonzaga, Marquess of Mantua, in 'Madonna della Vittoria' by Andrea Mantegna, 1496
Group of Italian Soldiers and Men in Oriental Costume by Vittore Carpaccio, 1493-1500
The Battle of Zonchio (Navarino, Peloponnese), 1499, between Venetians against Ottomans

Venetian Foot Soldiers in Armies of the Middle Ages, Volume 2 by Ian Heath, based on the Life of St Ursula, by Vittore Carpaccio

Druzhina
Italian Illustrations of Costume & Soldiers

Thanks for the links

James

These are great thanks!

Francesco II Gonzaga above – he appears to be wearing blackened armour. Is this typical of Italian armours of the period? I have always painted mine steel/silver as I assumed they would be going into battle looking their best…

Now I am wondering.

The "black" colour of the armour looks like degraded/darkend paint rather than a deliberate paint job. This is a frequent problem with old paintings as the original shade of the silver/metalic paint used becomes much darker as the silver used to make the paint is exposed to the elements. Hence the many medieval manuscripts that show grey or blackish armour even though the eyewitness accounts tell of brightly polished "white" armour.

If we go by the eyewitness statements and the records left by armourers blackend armour only appears in significant numbers later on in the 16th Century.

Great links – thanks

The crossbows hanging on the wall are an impressive size.

db

I think we – figure designers, particularly – sometimes underestimate the size of actual bows and crossbows.

In this case though I suspect that both weapons and armour are out of scale compared with the men, the breastplates for example are so large that it would be hard to fight in them as the movement of your arms would be impeded.

The guard room weapons may be types favoured for defending a castle – a staff sling can be seen, not a common weapon for the 1490s.

Druzhina
15th Century Illustrations of Costume & Soldiers