Page:A record of European armour and arms through seven centuries (Volume 4).djvu/260

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  • ability, from his hand. It was acquired by Queen Isabella II in 1847. The

subject chosen for its ornamentation is taken from the semi-epical "Trionfi" of Petrarch.

Fig. 1303. Shield

Once in the collection of the Archduke Ferdinand of Tyrol. About 1560 Imperial Armoury, Vienna

There is in the Imperial Armoury of Vienna a half suit of armour, together with a rondache shield, that formerly belonged to the Archduke Ferdinand of Tyrol. This rondache (Fig. 1303) is part of that equipment for man and horse which is known in later inventories as the "Milan Harness," but which is described in the inventory of the inheritance of the Archduke, made in the year 1596, as follows: "The Milanese embossed harness which has been bought from the Merchant Serebej" (Translation). Without necessarily endorsing it we quote Herr Wendelin Boeheim's theory that the name Serebej refers to the Milanese embosser and damascener, Giovanni Battista Serabaglio, who is supposed to have supplied the Archduke with this particular armour and shield in 1560 for the sum of 2,400 crowns.