Czy Michał Archanioł nosi włoską zbroję płytową? Analiza bronioznawcza "Sądu Ostatecznego" Hansa Memlinga

Abstrakt

The article analyses the armament shown in The Last Judgement Triptych, painted by Hans Memling (1467-71). The author of the article focuses on the figure of Archangel Michael, who is presented twice in the painting: in the middle of the piece as a person weighing deeds and on the outer wing, where Memling introduces Catharine Tanagli, the founder s wife. The stylistic analysis of the work discovers a major similarity to plate armour in both images of the Archangel.

Further examination of the Archangels armour in The Last Judgement and the comparison with Italian-style armours in two other Memling’s paintings: the diptych Virgin and Child with Musician Angels, with St George and Donor and The Virgin and Child with an Angel, St George and Donor reveal similarities in the look of the cuirass, plate hand armour and plate leg armour, with just slight differences in the case of the sabatons. However, it is difficult to clearly define the entire stylistics of the discussed armour, since the Archangel is wearing a coat over the pauldrons, which makes them invisible and impossible to characterize.

An extended research into other Netherlandish pieces of art from the period, such as The Last Judgement by Petrus Christus from 1452, the tapestry based on the lost Justice of Trajan and Herkinbald by Rogier van der Weyden from 1461, and the knights shield from the British Museum dated to the 1460s - 70s, demonstrates presumably a third separate armourer style in Western Europe, next to the Italian and German ones.

The aesthetics of the above-mentioned pieces show a strong Lombardian influence, especially in the form of big asymmetrical pauldrons and other elements of hand protection, as well as a certain similarity of other details. This means that the protective armour worn in Burgundy, including Flanders, has characteristics of both Northern and Michalak Southern Europe. After a thorough analysis of the discussed details, the author includes the armour of Archangel Michael from the Gdańsk polyptych among the examples of the local stylistics of Burgundy and the Netherlands.

Other elements of the protective armour are small equestrian shields with an edge Crossing the middle and rounded lower part. There are two shields on both outer wings of the polyptych. A very interesting piece is to be found in the buckler shield of Archangel Michael, painted on the exterior part of Memlings work. It is almond-shaped with an arched bulge in the middle. Other pieces of weaponry captured by Memling in The Last Judgement are swords, ranked by the paper s author as type XVIII and XVIII a, based on the typology created by Oakeshott and developed by Marian Głosek. Aside from swords, in his painting the artist also captured battle forks, a military flail, lance, and a mace spiked with nails. This leads to conclusion that The Last Judgement presents pieces of equipment of the higher social class as well as plebeian weaponry. The whole of the armament can be qualified as typical of the 1460s and 1470s.