Turkish Horse's Head Armour "Chamfron"

Turkish, Tombak (Copper alloy), Chamfron (Horse's Head Defense) stamped with the Kayı tribe Tamga, 16th century. Height: 59, 06 cm. Width: 22, 23 cm. Weight: 1917 g. This tombak, chamfron was intended for ceremonial use, as Turkish battle armour for both horse and rider was generally fabricated of steel. A tamgha (stamp, seal) is an abstract seal used by the Turks as the emblem of a particular tribe. The KAYI tribe (Turkish: Kayı boyu) is a sub-branch of the BOZOK Tribal federation of OGHUZ Turks. Osman I, founder of Ottoman Dynasty was a hereditary leader in the Kayı tribe. Royal arsenal of the Ottoman Dynasty (Cebehane) used Kayı Tamga as it’s distinctive mark on every kind of weaponry.