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A suit of armour with horse saddle, stirrups and trappings

A suit of armour with horse saddle, stirrups and trappings
 1665

Medium
metal, wood, pigments, lacquer, gold paint, silk, cotton, leather, gilt
Measurements
(1) 28.2 × 41.0 × 39.0 cm (saddle)
(2-3) 25.6 × 12.5 × 29.0 cm (each) (stirrups)
(4) 22.0 × 43.5 × 41.7 cm (Kabuto, helmet)
(5) 25.5 × 20.0 × 12.0 cm (Mempo, face guard)
(6) 45.5 × 38.5 × 26.0 cm (Do, body armour)
(7) 71.5 cm (centre back) 45.0 cm (sleeve length) (jacket)
(8) 94.0 cm (centre back) 32.0 cm (waist, flat) (Hakama, trousers) (9-10) 62.5 cm (sleeve length) (each) 46.0 cm (width, flat) (each) (Kote, arm guards) (11-12) 31.5 cm (height) (each) 37.5 cm (circumference) (each) (Suneata, calf guard)
(13) 53.0 × 69.7 cm (saddle cloth)
(14) 22.5 × 70.5 cm (saddle cloth) (15-16) 35.5 × 68.5 × 2.3 cm (each) (Kusazuri, skirted parts) (17-18) 29.0 × 26.5 × 5.5 cm (each) (Sode, shoulder guards)
(19) 56.7 × 155.0 cm (Haidate, thigh guards)
(20) 35.5 × 39.3 × 4.5 cm (saddle pad) (21-22) 99.3 × 7.0 cm (each) (saddle pads) (23-24) 28.0 × 38.0 × 2.5 cm (each) (saddle pads)
(25) (66.0 × 40.0 × 11.0 cm) (horse straps)
(26) 220.0 × 12.5 × 25.5 cm (horse straps)
(27) 245.0 × 19.0 cm (horse fitting)
(28) 268.0 × 6.0 cm (horse fitting)
(29) 208.0 × 3.0 cm (horse fitting)
(30) 150.4 × 9.4 cm (horse fitting)
(31) 225.0 × 16.0 cm (horse fitting)
(32) 266.0 × 12.8 cm (horse fitting)
Place/s of Execution
Japan
Accession Number
460.1-32-D2
Department
Asian Art
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Acquired, 1889
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of The Gordon Darling Foundation
Gallery location
Level 1, NGV International
About this work

This ornately decorated saddle with matching stirrups features a relief lacquer (taka maki-e) design of red-crowned cranes and turtles, symbols of good fortune and longevity, as well as plum blossoms over a cascading waterfall, indicating spring and reincarnation. Inscribed on the underside with the year Kambun 5 (1665), these pieces may have been re-lacquered in the late Edo period (early to mid nineteenth century) to display the ostentatious taste of their samurai owner.