page_title: Ksour Essef cuirass
section_title: Description
hierarchical_section_title: Ksour Essef cuirass / Description
caption_attribution_description: English: Front of the Ksour Essef cuirass
context_page_description: The Ksour Essef cuirass is an ancient breastplate found in a Punic tomb in 1909 not far from Ksour Essef, Tunisia.
  This piece of armour, generally dated to the 2nd century BC, is of Italiote origin and comes from Southern Italy. Its discovery in Tunisia led researchers to link it to the expeditions of the Second Punic War led in Italy by the Carthaginian general Hannibal between 211 and 203 BC This hypothesis, although tempting, is now widely questioned following in-depth examination, at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, of the various objects found in the tomb.
  The cuirass is nowadays kept in the Bardo National Museum in Tunis, as is the archaeological material found in the same tomb. It is still, a century after its discovery, one of the emblematic pieces of its ancient department.
context_section_description: The cuirass (inv. 01-02-03-01) is identified as belonging to the "kardiophylax" or heart guard type. "The most important piece of the find", it is made of gilded bronze and measures 30 centimetres in height or 28 centimetres by 30 centimetres for the pectoral. The front side measures 42.5 centimetres by 44 centimetres and the reverse side measures 42 centimetres by 66 centimetres.
  It has a breastplate and a backrest or bib: the faces of this part have three raised circles including a representation of Minerva helmeted. Strands of the goddess's hair are visible. Her eyes are large and her lips thick. She is wearing a necklace of acorns, which is reminiscent of the top of the breastplate, which is decorated with a similar necklace of Acorns and bucranium. Her helmet is decorated with Rinceaux and three crests. A palmette motif is also present on each side of the deity's head.
  A floral motif, identified as a lily, is located between the circles. The breastplate had a central motif that has now disappeared and was probably made of silver according to Merlin. The pattern on the back is an eight-pointed rosette. Bands for attaching the breastplate with rivets are decorated with globes and palmettes. The breastplate also has geometric and floral decorations that complement its ornamentation.
caption: Detail of the floral motifs
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