The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 22, 2023

Corsèque (Chauve-Souris)

c. 1530

North Italy, 16th century

Steel; round wood haft with leather straps

Overall: 183.5 cm (72 1/4 in.); Blade: 22.2 cm (8 3/4 in.)

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1802

Location

210A Armor Court

Fun Fact

The corsèque is said to have originated in Corsica, from where it takes its name.

Description

The corsèque is a pole arm with a symmetrical three-pronged head consisting of a central double-edged blade and two sharp, upturned wings. The side blades served several functions: as guard to protect the soldier's hand when a thrust was delivered with the central blade; as a hook for unseating a mounted opponent; and to trip the opponent's horse. The corsèque was used mostly in Italy and France from the 1400s to the early 1600s.

Provenance
Richard Zschille (1847-1903, Leipzig, Germany
?-1916
Frank Gair Macomber (1849-1941), Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art
1916-
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Catalogue of Arms and Armour. [Boston, Massachusetts]: [Frank Gair Macomber], 1900. cat. no. 367 archive.org
Gilchrist, Helen Ives. A Catalogue of the Collection of Arms & Armor Presented to the Cleveland Museum of Art by Mr. and Mrs. John Long Severance; 1916-1923. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1924. Mentioned: p. 187, H20 archive.org
Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998. pp. 127, 168; cat. no. 113
Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms & Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007. cat. no. 109, p. 187
Exhibition history

Armor Court Reinstallation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1916.1802