The Tournament and its Role in the Court Culture of Emperor Maximilian I (1459-1519)

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Queue – A metal hook sometimes found protruding from the back of tournament armour, 
which was designed to catch and cradle the lance while jousting. There is a possible 
etymological connection to the German term Schweif/Schweifrennen, or ‘tail’.  
 
Rennen – One of the two (along with Gestech) primary overarching styles of late medieval 
German joust, characterised by its use of pointed lances and the sallet.  
 
Renntartsche – The large shield, usually made of wood and leather, worn in the Rennen, which 
covered the entire front of a knight’s body and lower face, eliminating the need for a metal 
breastplate or bevor.  
 
Rennzeug – The complete suit of armour worn in a Rennen. 
 
Sabatons – Armoured protection for a knight’s feet.  
 
Sallet – The style of helmet used most frequently in the Rennen, characterised by its minimal 
face protection and distinctive tapering point at the rear. Known in German as a Rennhut. 
 
Schraubenschlüssel – A three-pronged, multi-purpose tool used for assembling both the 
Rennzeug and the Stechzeug. 
 
Shaffron – Armour protecting a horse’s head, often intended to be worn under a caparison. In 
the joust, either the shaffron or the caparison often had no eye-holes, obscuring the horse’s 
vision and preventing them from seeing the oncoming horse.  
 
Stechsack – A padded bumper worn around a horse’s neck to protect its rider’s legs in lieu of 
plate armour. Also known as a Stechküssen.  
 
Stechtartsche – The small rectangular shield used in the Gestech, which was fastened to the 
breastplate. 
 

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Stechzeug – The complete suit of armour worn in a Gestech.  
 
Streiftartsche – Armour to protect a knight’s upper legs, similar in form and function to 
dilgen but broader and shallower in depth. Used in the Rennen. 
 
Tassets – Articulated armoured protection for a knight’s thighs.  
 
Tilt – The wooden barrier separating two knights in a joust. ‘Tilting’ would eventually become 
a synonym for the act of jousting.  
 
Tonnlet – An armoured ‘skirt’ worn in foot combat to protect a knight’s upper legs.  
 
Vamplate – A metal cone surrounding the shaft of the lance to provide protection to the 
knight’s hand. 
 
 

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Appendix 3: Extant Maximilian Tournament Armours 
This appendix is sorted under the headings of armour and associated items relating to the 
broad divisions of the Gestech, the Rennen, the tourney, and foot combat, which are, when 
possible, further divided into complete suits, partial suits, accessories and equestrian items. 
Also included are miscellaneous individual items and miscellaneous equestrian items. Each of 
these categories is organised chronologically. The appendix was compiled primarily from the 
inventory of the Hofjagd- und Rüstkammer (HJRK), the collection of arms and armour (formerly 
known as the Waffensammlung) in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. It also draws upon the 
holdings of the Royal Armouries, UK, and the American collections of the Philadelphia 
Museum of Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.   
 
Items related to the 
Gestech 
 

 
Complete suits 
 
1. Complete Stechzeug 
    Date: c. 1485 
    Manufactured: Augsburg 
    Armourer: Lorenz Helmschmid 
    Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK S VI 
 
2. Complete Stechzeug for the Welschgestech 
    Date: c. 1500 
    Manufactured: Netherlands 
    Armourer: Unknown master ‘h’ 
    Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK S II 
 

 
Partial suits 
 
3. Stechzeug fragment for the Welschgestech 
    Date: c. 1490-95 

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    Manufactured: Netherlands and Augsburg 
    Armourer: Unknown 
    Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK S. III 
 
4. Stechzeug fragment 
    Date: c. 1494 
    Manufactured: Augsburg 
    Armourer: Lorenz or Jörg Helmschmid 
    Current location: Philadelphia, Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1930-63-1a—t 
 
5. Three Stechzeug fragments 
    Date: 1494 
    Manufactured: Augsburg 
    Armourer: Jörg Helmschmid 
    Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK S. XI; S. XIII; S. XV 
 
6. Two Stechzeug fragments 
    Date: 1494 
    Manufactured: Augsburg 
    Armourer: Lorenz Helmschmid 
    Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK S. XII; S. XIV 
 
7. Two Stechzeug fragments 
    Date: c. 1495 
    Manufactured: Nürnberg 
    Armourer: Konrad Poler 
    Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK S. XVII; S. XVIII 
 
8. Stechzeug fragment for the Welschgestech 
    Date: c. 1495 
    Manufactured: Netherlands and Augsburg 
    Armourer: Unknown 

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    Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK S. IV 
 
9. Stechzeug fragment 
    Date: c. 1510 
    Manufactured: Nürnberg 
    Armourer: Konrad Poler 
    Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK S. XIX 
 

 
Accessories 
 
10. Coronel lance head for the Gestech 
      Date: c. 1480-90 
      Manufactured: Innsbruck 
      Maker: Unknown 
      Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK B 53 
 
11. Three Schraubenschlüssel for a Stechzeug 
      Date: Late-fifteenth century 
      Manufactured: Southern Germany 
      Armourer: Unknown 
      Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK B 141c; B 171e; B 174e 
 

 
Equestrian 
 
12. Ten saddles for the Gestech 
      Date: Late 15th century 
      Manufactured: South Germany 
      Maker: Unknown 
      Current location: Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, HJRK B 204; B 208; B 131; B 3;         
      B 17; B 135; B 88; B 203; B 6; B 10 
 
 

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