Research Cheater

[hsifeng]

O Great LJ Hivemind...

I come to you with a request for information. A friend has recently been being pestered to produce evidence showing that 16^th C German men *did not* wear netted gold cauls under their battle helmets.

My initial thought upon hearing this was, “Are you crazy? Who would wear an item THAT EXPENSIVE under their helm?” I mean… gold…netted…re-embroidered over…? Are you nuts?

My second thought was, “I thought we normally tried to prove that someone *did* wear an item rather than the opposite? I mean, prove to me that 16^th C German men didn’t wear fairy wings under their backplates!”

*eye roll*

Then I realized; I have seen dozens of Landsknecht re-enactors wear these things around during the day while in their breastplates over the years. I don’t think I’ve seen any of them smash a helmet down over the top…but maybe that is where this guy got the initial idea. OK, so it may just be an issue of monkey see, monkey do. As for actual evidence of this taking place in the 16^th C on the other hand, if there are 16^th C images of un-helmed but armored men wearing these in portraiture, my guess would be that the images in question are “I’m Showing Off My Armor” shots; the addition of the “gelbhaube”/caul as a way to enhance the overall look-at-me-and-my-pimp-gear image, rather than to indicate that the caul was part of an armor rig in some way.

Then again, I don’t know that this particular re-enactment-ism has ever been really researched.

So I put it to ya’ll; anyone out there have any details (wardrobe inventory items, images of extant woolen arming caps, narrative descriptions, etc.) that might help clarify this issue with some data?

Comments

[etaine-pommier.livejournal.com]

I suppose the first logical fallacy is: you cannot prove a negative :-) I tend to agree with you re: pimping ones portraiture, plus any images of Saints are allegorical and therefore suspect - how many saints of the saints depicted are concurrent and actually wore armor, after all?

My initial thought about using netted caps to control long hair would be to experiment - my experience is that long hair not only distributes unevenly in a netted caul, it mats when pressure is applied. (I braid my own hair to go under my gelbhaube and beret for exactly that reason.) So using it to control hair under helmet seems like it would result in uncomfortable rat's nests. Do we know anyone with the trifecta of long hair, a documentable netted haube*, and a helmet that would be willing to try it and see what happens?

No scans (you know how bad I am with scans and photos!)

* Not the mesh they sell at JoAnn's, please. Which, btw, I have totally been known to use in a pinch, and which the RMS used for *years.*

[hsifeng.livejournal.com]

I suppose the first logical fallacy is: you cannot prove a negative :-)

Exactly!

I am going to go fishing to see if my friend can put together the net haube/hair/helm combo. She certainly has the resources (long-haired jouster husband and full costume shop). If she gets to reproduce this idea I will come back with information!