Stechzeug

These two suits of armour for the joust of peace were owned by Archduke Sigmund and Emperor Maximilian I. The weight of this armour is about 45 kilograms. The most heavy elements are the breastplate and backplate and the helmet screwed to them. The arms were protected by pauldrons, besagues, and the vamplate; the left hand was in a manifer (overized left gauntlet). The lance was fitted with a coronell, the lance head shaped like a small crown with three or four prongs, which were blunted to reduce the danger of injury.The Joust of peace (Stechen) was one of the two main forms of tournay on horseback. The aim of the contest was to unseat the opponent and to break the lance against his armour. Other variants aimed at tearing down the »targe« (attached shield) or the crest of the opponent’s helmet. Around 1500, a distinction was made between the joust in the German fashion (Joust of peace, witho ut the tilt) and a joust in the Italian fashion Plankengestech or Wesches Gestech (Joust of peace, with the tilt). In the second version, the opponents were separated from each other by a wooden barrier (called a tilt). The armor was thick, heavy, and rigid. The helmet was screwed firmly to the breast- and backplate. In order to deliver a more precise blow, the c.3.5 metre long blunt lance was would be couched on a lance-rest attached to the breastplate. Leg armour was not necessary, as blows below the belt were forbidden.