Schembart visor

The Schembart visor is said to have been named after the masked participants of the medieval Schembartlaufen. In similar fashion, helmets sporting grotesque visors were worn by the younger members of patrician families from the city of Nuremberg who participated in tournaments held during the Shrovetide festivities.

Another story suggests that these visors originated from the Hussar tournaments organized by Emperor Ferdinand I, in which participants dressed in Hungarian and Turkish costumes used sabres to strike off feathers attached to the helmets and shields of their opponents.

Most images of these visors seem to associate them with Maximilian armor.

I don't think that I've seen any 1/72 knights with this type of helmet, but I recently picked up a figure that I would like to think has a Schembart visor (though in all likelihood, he is just a landsknecht sporting a gigantic mustache).

I was unable to identify the maker, but there seem to be some kind of markings on the base.

Right now I have the figure primed, but I'm not sure if I want to paint him as a landsknecht with a Schembart visor, just a regular landsknecht, or if I want to transfer his head to a fully armored body.

I'd be interested in finding out what line of figures he comes from if anyone has any ideas.

Del Prado Medieval Soldiers

Advertisement for the 60mm Medieval Collection.

The Spanish publisher del Prado was established in 1988 and is known for its partwork series subscriptions that come bundled with collectible models. They are supposed to have had a presence in the USA at one time, but I have never seen any of their publications on sale anywhere. I'm not even sure if they are still in business, since some of their properties have apparently been sold off.

I was more familiar with their diecast fire engines, since they made them in 1/72 scale, but recently I found out that 1/72 Napoleonic and medieval figures were sold under the del Prado label.

I was a bit hesitant about buying any of the figures at first, since it seemed that some of the putative 1/72 Napoleonic figures might actually be closer to 28mm, but after finding a large lot of the medieval figures on eBay for a little over US$1 a figure, I decided to take a chance and purchase the lot.

When I received the package, I wondered what I had been sent because it looked as if the contents had been taped up in a tattered paper bag that was full of holes.

When I opened the paper, I saw that half of the figures inside had fallen out of their blisters. The plastic packaging contained water, and the backings were still all damp. It seems Deutsche Post somehow half drowned the package, and that the outer wrapping was originally a box, before being deformed by water damage.

Anyway, the figures all seemed to be there, and the loose figures didn't seem to have much in the way of damage to the paint, so I guess it wasn't a huge deal in the end.

Here are the figures I received, starting with castle besiegers in red and white livery.

AME001, AME004, AME007, AME008, AME010

AME012, AME015, AME017, AME019

AME021, AME023, AME026, AME028

AME036, AME038

Next are the castle defenders in gold and red livery.

AME003, AME006, AME009, AME011

AME014, AME020, AME024

Overall, I like these figures. They match up well with 1/72 plastics, and are well sculpted with good proportions. Some of the figures seem to be made of lead, so the metal is very soft, but others are made of a harder tin alloy. The paint jobs are not the greatest quality. It is a bit on the sloppy side, but at least they are painted (unlike the large part of my collection).

I may try to buy some Napoleonics to do comparisons at some point if I see them for cheap, but I really would like to complete a set of medieval figures. It is unclear how many figures were produced in the series, and from the looks of some of the poses, a siege engine may even be part of the line. I'd be interested to hear from people who have more information on these figures.

Thierry la Fronde

Thierry la Fronde was a popular French TV show from the early 60s which I am only aware of due to the existence of a rare set of 1/72 figures representing characters from the show. The set was produced by an unknown manufacturer, and rumor has it that the figures were commissioned by collectors who were fans of the series.

English pig-dogs! Go and boil your bottoms,
you sons of a silly person!

I was able to obtain a small lot of these figures recently, but unfortunately it did not include a figure of the Black Prince.

The poses are not particularly exciting, but these toys are pretty difficult to find in my experience.

If anyone has a Black Prince figure they can trade or sell, please contact me.