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 and strapwork are drawn with the firmest of touches, the groundwork being filled in with a black pigment. The suit is fully protective, but of the simplest construction, with duplicated pauldrons, and the usual mid-XVIth century arm defences with fingered gauntlets. The breastplate has the slight tapul in the fashion of about 1550-60; there are taces of two plates and close fitting laminated tassets overlapping the short cuisses; the jambs are incomplete, and we are inclined to think were originally finished with sollerets of plate now missing. Fitted by a strong staple to the top of the breastplate is a large buffe such as would be used in conjunction with a much more robustly fashioned burgonet helmet than that now found on the suit; and although the casque which is now part of the harness actually belongs to it, it must have been interchangeable with one of heavier construction—now lost.

Lazarus Schwendi, soldier and diplomat, was born about 1522 and died in 1583. He is depicted wearing this same harness in the picture now hanging in Room VII, No. 102, in the Castle of Ambras. In this portrait the harness is shown as painted entirely black, doubtless for purposes of war. It was not until 1884 that this black paint was removed from the suit; although the tracing of the etching was always discernible. Thanks to this coating of pigment the surface of the suit is in perfect preservation.

Barely had the first quarter of the XVIth century passed before the spirit of the Renaissance affected the taste of the great nobles, especially those of the Latin races. We have already dwelt upon its influence on offensive arms in the latter part of the XVth century (see vol ii, pp. 270 et seq.) and shall deal later in this work with its effect on the essentially pageant armour of shields and helmets. We shall now consider to what extent body armour generally came under its sway. One of the suits we are about to describe is perhaps the only one of its kind that exists to-day in its entirety. This harness was not used in combat but for purely parade purposes—at reviews of troops or on occasions of processional entries into cities—it was made for Charles V and is now in the Royal Armoury of Madrid, A 188 (Fig. 1051). There is record of another worn by Philip II as Prince of Asturias in the Tournament at Valladolid (1544), which, however, to-day no longer exists. The suit in Madrid is perhaps one of the most famous of enriched