1590/1600
French
France
Intended to protect the neck, by the late 16th century the gorget had also become a symbol of rank, as men wore the pieces in civilian contexts as a fashionable allusion to military prowess or status. This example is painted with red and black translucent glass enamel, a rare and fragile decoration that has all but shattered off the fine interlace pattern.
Steel, gilding, brass, translucent enamel, and leather