Pillow Sword
c. 1650
Maker Unknown
Medieval Art
Pillow Sword, c. 1650. Italy, 17th century. Steel, pierced; leather and wood; overall: 93 cm (36 5/8 in.); blade: 77.8 cm (30 5/8 in.); quillions: 9.5 cm (3 3/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1495 The "pillow-sword" is so-named because of where it was kept. A sword like this one, with a straight blade and relatively simple hilt, would have been suspended above a headboard within arm's reach for bedside defense should an intruder attack while the household was asleep and vulnerable.
- Maker/Artist
- Maker Unknown
- Classification
- Arms and Armor
- Formatted Medium
- steel, pierced; leather and wood
- Dimensions
- Overall: 93 cm (36 5/8 in.); Blade: 77.8 cm (30 5/8 in.); Quillions: 9.5 cm (3 3/4 in.)
- Departments
- Medieval Art
- Accession Number
- 1916.1495
- Credit Line
- Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance
- Exhibitions
- Armor Court Reinstallation, The Cleveland Museum of Art (09/10/1998); "Armor Court Reinstallation"
- Rights Statement
- CC0
- Museum Location
- 210A Armor Court
Have a concern, a correction, or something to add?
