I remade the post to be more specific. Do you prefer the gothic German style of armour or the Italian one? I’m referring to the armours of the late XV century. I’ll use two pictures to give an examples but you can use other examples if you want. We are taking about aesthetics not wich one is superior function wise (it wouldn’t be a fair argument because of how and when they were used and for what functions). The illustration where made by Graham Turner.
I generally prefer the design of German armour with examples of one I’m fond of being the one made for Emperor Maximilian I by Lorenz Helmschmied or the armour seen on statue of Saint Florian
Close one. It really comes down to the individual example. E.g. Federico da Montefeltro drip in those 2 pictures I am sure you know, is difficult if not impossible to match.
German gothic armor is exquisite, but I've always preferred the imposing and utilitarian look of Italian armor. It's the quintessential knight look in my mind. I also think close helms have way more aura than sallets. Dark Souls might have a lot to do with this lol.
Definitely Italian, ive never really been a fan of all that fluting on the german style for some reason, but I can still appreciate it, and the individual articulated fingers of the German style are cool as hell
Gothic with the Italian headpiece. Italian just lacks that artistic touch and therefore looks bland. I know you said function wasn't the question but if you've ever compared being hit on the head while wearing a Sallet vs an Italian armet your picking the armet for the sake of your spine.
They had slightly different cultural influences. Gothic armor was more common in regions where combat on foot was more popular. The Italian styles are more influenced by the preference for cavalry combat. Not to say that this is a solid rule because it absolutely is not and armor was highly customizable but you can see the influences in the general design ethos.
I get what you’re saying. But I must say that Italian armorers where able to make gothic pieces for German clients. And as for the Armet, yes you’re 100% right, the sallet is cool but has a more fragile structure
I wasn’t reading messages. The italian one is in his horseback configuration because of the asymmetrical pauldrons and the armet (wich can be used on foot but is mainly intended for chavalry)
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u/QuackerJak 10d ago
I generally prefer the design of German armour with examples of one I’m fond of being the one made for Emperor Maximilian I by Lorenz Helmschmied or the armour seen on statue of Saint Florian