Medieval Body and Head Armor

Medieval body and head armor in this group covers protective equipment worn by European soldiers and knights before the widespread adoption of plate armor. The hauberk, or byrnie, is a mail shirt usually reaching at least to mid-thigh and including sleeves, worn over padded clothing to defend the torso and arms against cutting and piercing blows. The cervelliere is a hemispherical, close-fitting steel or iron skull cap worn as a close helmet beneath a larger great helm or coif, protecting the head while leaving the face and lower skull exposed for mobility and visibility. Both pieces belong to the mail-and-steel-cap era of medieval defensive equipment that preceded the fully articulated plate harness of the late Middle Ages, and both were typically worn together with a padded arming garment underneath for shock absorption.