**A COMPOSITE GERMAN 'BLACK AND WHITE' THREE-QUARTER INFANTRY ARMOUR (KNECHTISCHE HARNASCH), NUR

**A COMPOSITE GERMAN 'BLACK AND WHITE' THREE-QUARTER INFANTRY ARMOUR (KNECHTISCHE HARNASCH), NUREMBERG, CIRCA 1570-80 comprising burgonet with one-piece skull rising to a high roped medial comb, fitted at the nape with an obtusely-pointed neck-guard and a later tubular plume-holder, at the brow with an obtusely-pointed pivoted peak (replaced), and at each side with a hinged cheek-piece pierced at its centre with five small circular ventilation-holes and flanged outwards at its lower edge to serve as a continuation of the neck-guard, 'almain' collar of three lames front and rear (the top two in each case replaced) with integral spaudlers each of six lames (the first two of the right and the first of the left partly disarticulated, the third of the left with a chipped lower front corner), and medially-ridged breastplate projecting forward over the belly, fitted with moveable gussets at the arm-openings and flanged outwards at it lower edge to receive a fauld of three lames, the third pierced at its centre with a hole (probably later) for the attachments of a codpiece and cut with a shallow arch separating a pair of pendent tassets each of six lames, extending to just above the knees, the burgonet, breastplate and collar each struck with the quality-control-mark of the city of Nuremberg, the main edges of the armour decorated with file-roped inward turns, and its surfaces, with bright recessed bands and borders against a blackened ground (partly refreshed with black paint), stand not included £5000-7000 [TOM TO CHECK. LACKING BACKPLATE. PEAK RESTORED]