Catapult Projectile from Montfort (Starkenberg) Castle

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The area of Montfort, in upper Galilee near Acre, Isreal, was occupied by French Crusaders in the eleventh century. In the early thirteenth century it was acquired by the Teutonic Knights, a German crusading order, who strengthened the fortifications and renamed it Starkenberg. Mamluk forces took the castle by siege in 1271, leaving it in ruins. In 1925, Bashford Dean, curator of Arms and Armor, had high hopes that an excavation of the undisturbed site might unearth examples of arms and armor from the crusading era. Field work, organized by Dean and privately funded, was carried out in 1926. Relatively few martial artifacts were found, but the site did yield important architectural elements, pottery, glassware, and many other items from the daily life of the castle's former occupants. Among the military finds were several stone projectiles, including this example, which may have been hurled from a catapult into the castle by its besiegers in 1271.

Arms and Armor

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The principal goals of the Arms and Armor Department are to collect, preserve, research, publish, and exhibit distinguished examples representing the art of the armorer, swordsmith, and gunmaker. Arms and armor have been a vital part of virtually all cultures for thousands of years, pivotal not only in conquest and defense, but also in court pageantry and ceremonial events. Throughout time the best armor and weapons have represented the highest artistic and technical capabilities of the society and period in which they were made, forming a unique aspect of both art history and material culture.

Metropolitan Museum of Art