Armour, helmet and sword of Admiral Jacob van Heemskerck

Jacob van Heemskerck commanded the Dutch ships that defeated a Spanish fleet near Gibraltar in 1607. The admiral lost his life in the fray. He was commemorated with a monument in the Oude Kerk in Amsterdam. In keeping with custom, his armour was hung above the tomb. The left cuisse (thigh defence) is missing: it was shattered by the cannonball that cost Van Heemskerck his life.