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The famous equestrian statuę of the condottiere Bartolomeo Colleoni, madę by Verrocchio around 1480, no w stands in the Campo SS. Giovanni e Paolo in Venice.

B: The Italian Militias

Bi: North Italian infantryman, mid-iĄth century Armoured men fighting with spears and large mantlet-like shields formed the core of Italian city militias. This man wears a tali visorless bascinet. Under his mail hauberk he also wears a quilted aketon, while from his belt hangs a large dagger known as a basilard. (Frescoes, c. 1340, Castle of Sabbionara, Avio.)

B2: North Italian crossbowman, mid-i^th century Crossbowmen and archers provided the offensive strength of urban militias, although it was the

Italian crossbowman who was soon to earn an international reputation. This man wears a padded aketon and over his helmet he has an embroidered cap. At his side hang the sword and buckler (smali shield) typical of most European light infantry. His crossbow is of an early wooden form, though it does now have a stirrup to make loading easier. (Frescoes, c.1340, Castle of Sabbionara, Avio.)

Bj: Yenetian infantryman, first half of the i^th century

The soldiers of Venice were mostly infantry as their main task was to fight at sea as marines. This man’s equipment shows the varied influences felt in Venice. His early bascinet is laced to a separate mail aventail which also has a German-style separate nasal fastened to the helmet by a turn-buckle. His extra-long triangular shield with its sharply angled corners is, by contrast, typically Byzantine. (Carved Capital, early i4th century, Doge’s Pałace, Venice; fresco of St. Demetrius, early i4th century, Grotto of San Biagio.)

C: The German and English Companies Ci: Italian army commander, mid-i4th century Continuing an ancient tradition, the commander of any large force carried a baton, sometimes gilded, as his symbol of office. This nobleman is relatively lightly armoured, as was still typical of most Italian cavalry. But he does wear a coat-of-plates under his tunic. From this, chains run to his sword and dagger so that they were not lost in the heat of battle. The large epaulette-like arm protections, perhaps espaliers, were an Italian fashion. Some sources even show a rider being held on his horse by a heavy strap running from the cantle to the pommel of his saddle. (Carved relief of Colaccio Beccadeli, c. 1340, Imola; fresco of Da Fogliano, mid-i4th century, Palazzo Publico, Sienna.)

C2: Austrian man-at-arms, mid-i 4th century German military fashions, perhaps under Italian influence, became morę decorative in the i4th century. This man’s bascinet still has an early form of basically fiat visor, while his arms are protected by splinted vambraces of a type long to remain popular in Germany. The axe was similarly still

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