Lamellar armour is a type of
body armour, made from small rectangular plates (scales or ''lamellae'') of iron or steel, leather (
rawhide), or bronze laced into horizontal rows. Lamellar armour was used over a wide range of time periods in
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the fo ...
,
Eastern Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea ...
(especially in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
,
Mongolia
Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million ...
, and
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
),
Western Asia
Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes A ...
, and
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...
. The earliest evidence for lamellar armour comes from sculpted artwork of the
Neo-Assyrian Empire
The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew ...
(911–609
BCE) in the
Near East
The ''Near East''; he, המזרח הקרוב; arc, ܕܢܚܐ ܩܪܒ; fa, خاور نزدیک, Xāvar-e nazdik; tr, Yakın Doğu is a geographical term which roughly encompasses a transcontinental region in Western Asia, that was once the hist ...
.
Lamellar armour should not be confused with
laminar armour, a related form of plate armour which is made from horizontal overlapping rows or bands of solid armour plates (called
lames) rather than scales. By comparison, lamellar armour is made from individual armour scales, which are laced together to form a strip of armour which appears to be solid but is not.
Description
Lamellar armour consists of small platelets known as "lamellae" or "lames", which are punched and laced together, typically in horizontal rows. Lamellae can be made of metal, leather ''
cuir bouilli'', horn, stone, bone or more exotic substances. Metal lamellae may be lacquered to resist corrosion or for decoration. Unlike
scale armour, which it resembles, lamellar armour is not attached to a cloth or leather backing (although it is typically worn over a padded undergarment).
In Asia, lamellar armor eventually overtook scale armour in popularity as lamellar restricted the user's movements much less than scale armour.
Use and history
The earliest evidence points to the early-
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...
Assyrians as the people responsible for the early development and spread of this form of
armour
Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or f ...
, during the
Neo-Assyrian Empire
The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew ...
. In the numerous battle scenes depicted in the reliefs from
Niniveh
Nineveh (; akk, ; Biblical Hebrew: '; ar, نَيْنَوَىٰ '; syr, ܢܝܼܢܘܹܐ, Nīnwē) was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is located on the eastern ban ...
and
Nimrud
Nimrud (; syr, ܢܢܡܪܕ ar, النمرود) is an ancient Assyrian city located in Iraq, south of the city of Mosul, and south of the village of Selamiyah ( ar, السلامية), in the Nineveh Plains in Upper Mesopotamia. It was a m ...
, commemorating the victories of
Ashurnasirpal and
Ashurbanipal
Ashurbanipal ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , meaning " Ashur is the creator of the heir") was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 669 BCE to his death in 631. He is generally remembered as the last great king of Assyria. Inheriting the throne a ...
from the 8th and 7th centuries BCE, hundreds of Assyrian soldiers, both infantry and cavalry are represented wearing
cuirasses constructed of
lamellae. These cuirasses reach from shoulder to waist, and in many instances they have short, close sleeves. If we accept the representations as correct and translate the method of construction literally, then we are confronted with a type of lamellar armour quite different from later specimens.
Lamellar armour was often worn by itself or as an augmentation to other armour, such as over a mail
hauberk
A hauberk or byrnie is a shirt of mail. The term is usually used to describe a shirt reaching at least to mid-thigh and including sleeves. Haubergeon ("little hauberk") generally refers to the quilted undergarment used with a hauberk, but the term ...
. The lamellar
cuirass was especially popular with the
Rus, as well as
Mongols
The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...
,
Turks,
Avars, other steppe peoples, as well as migratory groups such as the
Langobards as it was simple to create and maintain.
Lamellar helmets
The lamellar helmet ( German language: ''Lamellenhelm'', plural ''Lamellenhelme'') was a type of helmet used in Europe during the Early Middle Ages. Examples are characterized by caps made from overlapping lamellar scales, in addition to a brow pl ...
were also employed by
Migration Era and
Early Medieval peoples.
Lamellar armour has been found in Egypt in a 17th-century BCE context.
Sumer
Sumer () is the earliest known civilization in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. It is one of the cradles of ...
ian and
Ancient Egyptian bas-reliefs depicting soldiers have been argued as portraying the earliest examples of lamellar armour, particularly on chariot drivers, but it is not until the time of the
Assyrians (circa 900–600 BCE) that possible examples of lamellar appear in the archaeological record. Among finds of Assyrian armour (often individual or unconnected scales), there are examples that can clearly be classified as
scale armour as well as others that appear to be lamellar, and there exist a large number of finds whose function has proven difficult to determine.
The extent to which either type was used is a debated topic. Lamellar was used by various cultures from this time up through the 19th century. Lamellar armour is often associated with the
samurai
were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They ...
class of feudal Japan, but was commonly used in ancient and medieval
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
,
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic ...
, and
Mongolia
Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million ...
. Lamellar was also used in the
Russian Far East
The Russian Far East (russian: Дальний Восток России, r=Dal'niy Vostok Rossii, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in Northeast Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent; and is admin ...
, the tribes of
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part ...
and the
Sarmatians
The Sarmatians (; grc, Σαρμαται, Sarmatai; Latin: ) were a large confederation of ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic peoples of classical antiquity who dominated the Pontic steppe from about the 3rd century BC to the 4th cen ...
. Evidence of lamellar armour has also been found in various European countries.
Chinese lamellar armour
In ancient China, lamellar armour appeared by the 5th century BC. It consisted of individual armour pieces (lamellae, lamella singular) that were either riveted or laced together to form a suit of armour. 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 5 cm x 4 cm. For example, the
Terracotta Army
The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE with the purpose of protecting the emperor ...
of the
Qin dynasty
The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), ...
is portrayed as wearing six (6) or seven (7) different categories of lamellar armor corresponding to rank and military division. Many different types of lamellar armor have also been uncovered through excavations of
Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...
archeological sites. Lamellar was used from the ancient period through the medieval period, and was used all the way up to the
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
.
File:铁札甲 徐州.jpg, One variant of Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...
lamellar armour
File:铠甲 徐州汉墓.jpg, Another variant of Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...
lamellar armour
File:Late Warring States & Han Iron Armor Replica (9873774074).jpg, Modern replica of one variant of lamellar armor dating to the late Warring States through Western Han dynasty era
File:Han shieldbearers 01.jpg, Lamellar armored Han dynasty soldiers with armored hoods
File:Song soldiers from a tomb in Pengshan, Sichuan.png, Song dynasty soldiers with lamellar armour
File:Stone armour, Warring States period, Shaanxi Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology Research.jpg, Qin dynasty stone representations of lamellar armor
File:Qin_Terra_Cotta_Armored_Sleeves.jpg, Qin dynasty charioteer with lamellar armour, including armored sleeves
Byzantine lamellar armour
Lamellar is pictured in many historical sources on
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
warriors, especially
heavy cavalry. Recent studies by Timothy Dawson of the
University of New England, Australia
The University of New England (UNE) is a public university in Australia with approximately 22,500 higher education students. Its original and main campus is located in the city of Armidale in northern central New South Wales. UNE was the firs ...
, suggest that Byzantine lamellar armour was significantly superior to mail armour.
File:Byzantine klivanium (Κλιβάνιον).jpg, Modern reconstruction of an Eastern Roman ''klivanion'' (κλιβάνιον), suggested as a predecessor of Ottoman mirror armour
File:Byzantine_fresca_from_St-Lucas.jpg, Byzantine painting depicting Byzantine forms of lamellar armor
Japanese lamellar armour
Lamellar armour reached Japan around the 5th century, predating the rise of the
samurai
were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They ...
caste. Early Japanese lamellar armour, called ''keiko'', took the form of a sleeveless jacket and a helmet. The middle of the
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japan ...
was when lamellar armour started to take the shape that would be associated with samurai armour. By the late Heian period Japanese lamellar armour developed into full-fledged samurai armour called ''
Ō-yoroi
The is a prominent example of early Japanese armor worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan. The term ''ō-yoroi'' means "great armor."(Mondadori, 1979, p. 507).
History
''Ō-yoroi'' first started to appear in the 10th century during the midd ...
''. Japanese lamellar armour was made from hundreds or even thousands of individual leather (rawhide) or iron scales or lamellae known as ''kozane'', that were lacquered and laced together into armour strips. This was a very time-consuming process.
The two most common types of scales which made up the Japanese lamellar armour were ''
hon kozane'', which were constructed from narrow or small scales/lamellae, and ''
hon iyozane'', which were constructed from wider scales/lamellae.
File:Nerigawa hon kozane (close up).JPG, Close up view of Japanese lamellar armour, constructed with small individual scales/lamellae known as ''kozane''
File:Karuta tatami dou 3.JPG, Japanese lamellar cuirass
See also
*
Mail and plate armour
Mail and plate armour (plated mail, plated chainmail, splinted mail/chainmail) is a type of mail with embedded plates. Armour of this type has been used in the Middle East, North Africa, Ottoman Empire, Japan, China, Korea, Vietnam, Central ...
, an armour combining
mail
The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal sys ...
and lamellar-style metal plates in its construction
*
Laminar armour, an early form of plate armour made from horizontal overlapping rows or bands of solid armour plates called lames
References
Sources
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External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lamellar Armour
Body armor
Byzantine military equipment
East Asian armour
Medieval armour
Plate armour