Orlando Furioso Rod Puppet
date: label: date purchased
content: 1940
label: date made
content: 1900
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: This large oversized rod and string puppet, almost three feet tall, represents a medievel knight known as Orlando Furioso. Orlando the Knight is operated using a rod with strings. He is carved from wood and wears a blue satin suit covered with a full suit of brass armor, holding a shield and a steel sword.
label: Description (Brief)
content: He represents a long European story tradition based on the eighth-century tale of Roland, a Frankish knight who served as a commander on the Breton border of Charlemagne's great empire. In 778 A.D., as Charlemagne's army returned from fighting the Saracens in Spain, the rear guard was cut off by hostile Basques at a pass in the Pyrenees and Roland was killed. "The Song of Roland," based on this tale, emerged in the eleventh or twelfth century and Orlando Furioso became a stock character of marionette theaters across Europe from the 16th century on, especially popular in Sicily.
label: Description (Brief)
content: This puppet was found in Italy and donated to the Museum by Hazelle Rollins. Over a fifty year career, Rollins was a prominent historian who not only researched the art of puppetry, but created, manufactured, and performed countless puppet shows across the country.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: Italy
topic: label: general subject association
content: Puppetry
setName: label: See more items in
content: Culture and the Arts: Entertainment
label: See more items in
content: Puppets
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Hazelle H. and J. Woodson Rollins
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1979.1164.07
label: accession number
content: 1979.1164
label: catalog number
content: 1979.1164.07
objectType: label: Object Name
content: puppet
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: brass (armor material)
label: Physical Description
content: paint (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 34 1/2 in; 87.63 cm