Sallet (Barbute) 1460 - 1470

Curator: Right, let’s focus on this Sallet, also known as a Barbute, crafted from metal around 1460 to 1470 by Antonio Missaglia. It's part of the Art Institute of Chicago’s collection. What strikes you immediately? Editor: Well, it's so simple, almost austere. It feels like a minimalist sculpture more than a piece of armor, yet simultaneously menacing because of the unseen face it’s meant to hide. All that potential violence lurking, captured in cold steel. Curator: It's funny you mention sculpture because, functionally, it is exactly that; it's sculpted protection for a warrior’s head. A lot like covering your psyche with cultural metal. And I wonder about that violence. Does it project power? Or fragility? Editor: I'd say both, really. There's the obvious projection of dominance. But that opening— the mouth looks like it's screaming or gasping for air. A symbol of survival under immense pressure. Or perhaps, fear disguised as strength. What would this signify in terms of self and protection? Curator: Absolutely. Consider also the period. 1460 to 1470—we're in the late medieval period and on the verge of the Renaissance. Perhaps this mask, in all its metallic starkness, echoes the mental constrictions being slowly chipped away by humanism, where each hammered dent is the sign of conflict. Editor: You can almost feel the weight of tradition battling the rise of individuality. It’s that transition, captured and reflected in the metal itself. So much intensity locked in one shell. It speaks of hidden expressions within and a yearning for change on a historical and deeply personal scale. Curator: Yes, something about the light reflecting off of its pitted surface implies untold stories of conflicts, on and off the battlefield. We, in turn, are invited to look back on the world with the same awareness, finding its imprint on our journey today.