The word gorget comes from the Old French gorge, meaning throat, and the piece it names became essential precisely because the throat and collarbone remained exposed even under a mail coif. By the 15th century the gorget had taken on a second, structural role within the full harness: its anatomical shape distributed the weight of the attached pauldrons across the shoulders and upper torso rather than letting it hang from the neck. This reproduction follows the standard two-piece construction, hinged on one side and closed with a pin-lock on the other, finished with fluting and a roped edge in keeping with the wider Gothic harness style.
Gothic Gorget, Fluted, 18-Gauge Steel
The gorget evolved in the late Middle Ages to close a real gap in protection — the throat and collarbones, an area mail alone left vulnerable — and by the 15th century had become an integral, load-bearing part of the full harness. Beyond its own defensive role, the gorget served as the anchor point the pauldrons attached to, distributing their weight across the shoulders and torso rather than the neck alone. This 18-gauge steel reproduction is worked in the two-piece hinge-and-pin construction typical of the type, finished with the lightly fluted, roped-edge decoration of the Gothic style.
- Material: 18-gauge steel
- Construction: Two-piece, hinge and pin-lock
- Finish: Fluted with roped edge
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