THE SALLAD.
Visored sallads, with a peak behind and slits for vision, appear in the reign of Henry VI. The form is a low obtuse oval ridged in the middle; it replaced the bassinet, but was never used as an under helmet. It was generally associated with armour of the second half of the fifteenth century, and used with the mentonnière, which, when fixed, afforded excellent protection for the face and throat. The distinguishing feature is the peaked collar behind, which rests between the shoulders, and the helmet was occasionally, in the earlier forms, provided with a hinged nose-guard. It was worn at an angle, so that the ocularium came in the direct line of vision, and had often a movable visor. It measured in extreme cases as much as nineteen inches from back to front. An example of the time of the Roses hangs in St Mary’s Hall, Coventry, and there is another in the Priory Church at Hexham. The earliest representation of this form of helmet in England, that the author knows of, may be seen at Castle Donnington, Leicestershire, on a brass of Sir Robert Staunton, who died in 1458. This sort of helm is in several varieties, and a simple form was in use among the rank and file, especially by archers. There are several of these helmets in the “Rhodes” collection at the Rotunda, Woolwich, and actual specimens of typical Italian and German forms are to be found in most of in the German collections of armour; there are examples in the Tower. Illustrations of sallads are given in [Fig. 13].