Abraham Pistolekors' armour
The armour of Abraham Pistolekors, once the greatest man in Savo, the chief of Olavinlinna Castle, has arrived home. The armour is on display in the Central Hall next to the statue of St. Olav sculpted by Ville Vallgren. Pistolekors' coat of arms is on display in the castle's Little Duke's Hall.
The armour
The Sääminki soldier Yrjänä Ollinpoika (Göran Olofsson) Skott is said to have impressed King Gustav II Adolf with his marksmanship skills, leading Queen Kristiina to ennoble the family in 1645. At the same time, the family took the surname Pistolekors. Göran Olofsson's youngest son Abraham Pistolekors (c. 1635-1699) was a cavalry master in the Vyborg County Cavalry Regiment, where he was promoted to major in 1675. He served as commandant of Olavinlinna Castle from 1680.
The armour was made for a cavalryman for combat use, but there are no signs of battle. It consists of several dozen iron and steel parts and weighs about 23 kilograms. Armour made in the early 17th century in Holland, Germany or Flanders may also have been passed down within the family. The helmeted armour covers almost the entire body except for the legs, and the breastplate weighs 5 kg. The armour was probably made in the mid-16th century.
"The armour in the collection of the National Museum of Finland is significant because there are only a few of its kind left in Finland," says Jouni Kuurne, curator of the National Museum of Finland.
The armour has been in the Sulkava church since the funeral of Abraham Pistolekors until 1860, when it was donated to the National Museum of Finland. The armour will be on display in Olavinlinna from 25 January.
Photos by Ilari Järvinen, Timo Seppäläinen
The coat of arms
The funeral coat of arms of Abraham Pistolekors, a high quality sculpture, dates from 1699 and comes from the church in Sulkava where he is buried. In the centre you can see the family's noble coat of arms with its accompanying caged helmet. Below the coat of arms are the flags of the armies that were won in the battle, while the palm leaves symbolise victory.