Viking Leather lamellar Armour; lamellar Cuirass; Leather Armor; Viking Armor

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Robinson, K. G. (2004), Science and Civilization in China Volume 7 Part 2: General Conclusions and Reflections, Cambridge University Press

Qin armour [ edit ] This Warring States limestone horse armour set is used as grave goods, made to resemble iron and leather armour at that time. Armored charioteer of the Terracotta Army with lamellar sleeves protecting the arms Vikings most commonly carried sturdy axes that could be thrown or swung with head-splitting force. [20] The Mammen Axe is a famous example of such battle-axes, ideally suited for throwing and melee combat. [21] Fedor Solntsev's "Ancients of the Russian State" (1849–53) directly calls the kuyak a "Mongolian cotton fiber body armour". As a result of the Mongol invasions, their lamellar armor became popular in other nations, including China (such as the Yuan Dynasty, 1271–1368) and the Middle East (such as the Ilkhanate, 1256–1335).

References

The History of Song notes that Song "tools of war were exceedingly effective, never before seen in recent times," [71] and "their weapons and armor were very good", [71] but "their troops weren't always effective." [71] According to Sima Guang, since most military problems came from the north, the military establishment in the south was neglected, leaving soldiers without armour and even cities without gates. [72] do.-- Medieval Chinese Armies: 1260-1520; illustrated by David Sque, Osprey Publishing «Men-at-arms», ISBN 1-85532-254-4 During the Song dynasty (960–1279) it became fashionable to create warts on pieces of armour to imitate cold forged steel, a product typically produced by non-Han people in modern Qinghai. Warts created from cold work were actually spots of higher carbon in the original steel, thus aesthetic warts on non-cold forged steel served no purpose. According to Shen Kuo, armour constructed of cold forged steel was impenetrable to arrows shot at a distance of 50 paces. Even if the arrow happened to hit a drill hole, the arrowhead was the one which was ruined. [69] However crossbows were still prized for their ability to penetrate heavy armour. [70]

See also a photo of the same set of armour (in the center). Dated late 15th century. The description: "5. A soft type of armour which bears the name of the kuyak, also with a kuyak helmet (15th century)". Lorge, Peter (2015), The Reunification of China: Peace through War under the Song Dynasty, Cambridge University Press Lamellar armour was often worn by itself or as an augmentation to other armour, such as over a mail hauberk. The lamellar cuirass was especially popular with the Rus, as well as Mongols, Turks, Avars, other steppe peoples, as well as migratory groups such as the Langobards as it was simple to create and maintain. Lamellar helmets were also employed by Migration Era and Early Medieval peoples. [ citation needed] Debunking Common Misconceptions about Lamellar Armor in Popular Culture Misconception: Lamellar Armor is Inflexible and Restrictive The extent to which either type was used is a debated topic. The earliest definite instance of true lamellar was found in China. Twelve suits of lacquered lamellar dated to c. 433 BC were uncovered in a tomb at Sui-hsien, Hupei. [ citation needed] Lamellar was used by various cultures from this time up through the 16th century. Lamellar armour is generally associated with the armour worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan, although it came to Japan from Korea. [3]Lamellar armour is also associated with Mongolia, Eastern Russia disambiguation needed, the tribes of Siberia and the Sarmatians, evidence of lamellar armour has also been found in various European countries. [3] Japanese lamellar armour [ ]Partial plate armour in the form of a cuirass sewn together with fabric is mentioned in the Wubei Yaolue, 1638. Called quantiejia (complete metal armour), the text describes the usage of 100 catties of Fujian iron, 4–5 piculs of northern coal, and over 10 piculs of southern coal in the creation process of the plates. After finishing the plates, they were lacquered and linked together using cotton and woolen ropes. A full set of quantiejia weighed around 34.4 catties. One Ming catty was around 590 grams, making a full set of quantiejia around 20kg in weight. It's not known how common plate armour was during the Ming dynasty, and no other source mentions it. There are no records of mail and plate used together from Chinese records but the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty does mention the dismissal of an official for failing to supervise the production of "Chinese mail-and-plate armour" in the 15th century. Undergarment clothing with long, broad sleeves was worn under the outer coat. Genghis Khan (1158–1227) oversaw the widespread use of strong silk for this undergarment. The elite guards of the Liang dynasty (502–557) were equipped with helmets, uniforms, and armour that "trimmed in gold and silver and glistening under the sun's glare," [39] cost in all some several hundred thousand coppers for each soldier. The display reportedly sapped the spirits of Jin warriors, although the Jin commander Zhou Dewei said they were "more intent on posing than engaging the enemy." [39] Banded armour [ edit ] Home>전시안내>특별전시|국립고궁박물관". www.gogung.go.kr. Archived from the original on 12 December 2015 . Retrieved 2 September 2021. Burch E. S., Jr. 1974. Eskimo Warfare in Northwest Alaska // Anthropological Papers of the University of Alaska. Vol. 16. Fairbanks. ¹ 2.

The descriptions, while not offering any in-depth details of the kuyak's construction, suggest a textile body armour reinforced with iron plates, usually not specifying directly their placement, only mentioning the "nails" (rivets) which attached the plates to the cloth. This was often worn with faulds, pauldrons and arm protection ( rerebraces and vambraces), sometimes covered in expensive textiles like sateen, velvet or damask and decorated with fur. [17] Laminar armor proved to be inexpensive and easier to construct, although was often made to look like simulated lamellar plates. This is known as Kiritsuke iyozane.Lamellar armour of leather (more appropriately considered untanned or superficially tanned rawhide), bronze and iron appeared by the mid-4th century BC. It consisted of individual armour pieces (lamellae, lamella singular) that were either riveted or laced together to form a suit of armour. [6] Iron helmets constructed with multiple lamellae began to replace the one piece bronze helmets of old. One sample discovered in Yi county, Hebei Province was composed of 89 lamellae, averaging 5cm x 4cm. [7] Usually at least one part of an armour (a pauldron) was laminar, but sometimes a pauldron was comparatively "short" and instead of being laminar constructed from a few wooden planks it instead used only one big plank, and the rest of the hand was protected by splinted or lamellar vambrace. Besides optional vambraces an armour could optionally have a lamellar helm, and splinted or lamellar greaves.

According to Meng Hong, the reason for the Mongols' success was that they possessed more iron than previous steppe peoples. [78] Later at the beginning of the 15th century construction of laminar armour had significantly changed; instead of lacing being used, strips of new laminar armour were riveted to broad straps (like in lorica segmentata). As a result, laminar armour became more reliable than lamellar armour: hidden straps couldn't be cut without the armour being penetrated, the broad straps did not require continuous mending, and the straps were stiffer and more durable than the thinner lacing that was used previously. Laminar armour eventually became more popular than lamellar armour, and almost fully replaced lamellar armour by the end of 15th century.The spear was the most common weapon of the Scandinavian peasant class. Throwing spears were constantly used by the warrior class; despite popular belief, it was also the principal weapon of the Viking warrior, an apt fit to their formations and tactics. They consisted of metal heads with a blade and a hollow shaft, mounted on wooden shafts of two to three metres in length, and were typically made from ash wood. The spear heads could measure between twenty and sixty centimetres with a tendency towards longer heads in the later Viking Age. [2] Spear heads with wings are called krókspjót (hooked spear) in the sagas. Some larger-headed spears were called höggspjót (chopping spear) and could also be used for cutting. The barbed throwing spears were often less decorated than the ostentatious thrusting spears, as the throwing spears were often lost in battle. [23] Armour made up of leather, horn or metal segments forming a protective layer was relatively common in the East, especially among the tribes of the steppe. Metal lames were frequently used in the Roman East as they offered the best quality protection, although leather could be hardened by boiling or waxing to provide considerable protection without adding much weight. In the 17th century the Qing army was equipped with both lamellar and brigandine armour. [89] The quality of metal could differ greatly from a common soldier, whose armour could have only a thin soft sheet of metal, to an officer's brigandine, made of thin but tough and elastic steel. [40] After the conquest of China and peace was established in the majority of the empire, many soldiers became lazy and refused to wear armour. In the 18th century, the Qianlong Emperor said, "Our old Manchu customs respect righteousness and revere justice. Young and old, none are ashamed to fight for them. But after enjoying such a long period of peace, inevitably, people want to avoid putting on armor and joining the ranks of war." [90] As early as the 18th century, some brigandine armour had parts that were studded but did not actually include plates. [40] By the 19th century most Qing armour were purely for show. Some uniforms and show pieces imitated brigandine armour by keeping the outer studs for aesthetic purposes but omitted the protective iron plates on the inside. [91] According to one English source in the late 19th century, only the emperor's immediate body guard wore armour of any kind, and these guards were all nobles of the imperial family. [66] Lamellar was used by steppe tribes such as the Khazar khaganate, and the Turkic warrior-elites who came to dominate the Islamic states of Syria in the eleventh century. There is a common tradition of steppe lamellar across Siberia, central Asia and into China.