The breastplate is one of the most iconic pieces of a suit of armour, covering the torso and vital internal organs to protect from injury during combat. This breastplate was possibly used by the Knights of Rhodes during the Siege of Rhodes in 1522, when Suleiman the Magnificent, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, forced the Knights from the island.
Eaves, Ian, Walter J. Karcheski Jr., and Thom Richardson. Armour from Rhodes in the Museum of the Order of St John, Clerkenwell. London: Museum of the Order of St John, 1985.
Karcheski Jr., Walter J., and Thom Richardson. The Medieval Armour from Rhodes. Leeds: Royal Armouries and Higgins Armory Museum, 2000. Pages xi, 76–77, 141 and 148