Armour (Class II) — 16th century — 1590s
About this product
About this collection
This collection covers 22 armour objects from the 1590s, delivered across 122 images in 15 ZIP assets. The 1590s represents the effective end of full plate armour as standard military equipment — while high-quality armour continued to be made for wealthy individuals and for ceremonial purposes, the infantry soldier was increasingly equipped with just a helmet and breastplate.
Why it matters
The 1590s armour collection documents the twilight of an art form — the last decade in which a complete plate harness was a reasonable investment for a serious soldier. The pieces that survive are often of extraordinary quality, as armourers competed to prove the continuing value of their craft in the face of firearms.
Use cases & time to value
- Historical production design: Accurate armour reference for period-specific film, game, and theatrical productions
- Arms and armour scholarship: Comparative morphological and technical study of plate armour development
- AI training for historical objects: Labelled armour dataset for object-recognition and period-classification models
- Museum interpretation and education: High-quality imagery for galleries, textbooks, and public programmes
- Auction and provenance research: Museum-quality documentation supporting valuation and attribution
Data schema
| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| object_number | string | Royal Armouries catalogue number (II. prefix + sequence) |
| object_name | string | Standardised object type name as catalogued |
| class | string | II (Armour — Body Armour) |
| period | string | 16th century — 1590s |
| image_filename | string | Original filename as catalogued by the museum |
| image_format | string | tif (archival high-res), jpg (catalogue), or bmp (legacy) |
| width_px | integer | Image width in pixels |
| height_px | integer | Image height in pixels |
| file_size_bytes | integer | Uncompressed file size in bytes |
Collection stats
15 assets · 22 objects · 122 images · 16th century — 1590s
Assets (0)
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