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Samurai Armors
Samurai
armors are probably the most overlooked part of the samurai legend. When someone
talks about the samurai, they find the samurai swords more exciting and
awe-inspiring than anything else. And whoever imagines the Samurai dressed in anything, but
traditional clothing made of black or colourful cloth.
Yet, samurai armors are quite easily as interesting and exotic as the samurai swords and just as neccessary. For they are not just exotic, but a very important part of the Samurai's repertoire in the battlefield.
Much like the swords, the samurai armors, too, started out simple and almost crude in form. But gradually the armor, worn by the warriors, evolved over time with changing needs and with the coming of newer methods of technologies. Heavy armors got lighter and the crude designs received artistic facelifts that protected better.
The first real venture of the Japanese in making armor for the samurai resulted in heavy "clothing" made of solid metal plates. While the armor did offer protection from arrows, the drawbacks were plenty. Owing to their heaviness and inflexibility, the warrior's maneuvering ability was drastically reduced, something that was very essential in the battlefield. History notes that it was around the time of 1181-1185, during the Gempei War, that the first Japanese lamellar armor was made in Japan. Known as the yoroi, it weighed around 60lb and was to be worn by the mounted samurai. It consisted of heavy helmets and huge shoulder guards.
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- Do - This was the name given to the part of the armor that protected the whole upper-body.
- Sode - These were the suspended metal plates that protected the upper-arm and the shoulder. There were rings attached to the sode, through which passed silk cords which were tied together at the back of the armor in a decorative plait known as an agemaki. The cords were also protected using leather or metal guards so that they wouldn't snap during battle.
- Kabuto - This was the helmet, formed by a number of plates all held together by cone-shaped bolts. Often, the helmet was made in a decorative and artistic fashion and the different colors and type of helmet would be indicative of the rank of the samurai or the group he belonged to. The helmet has a tehen, a small hole right at its crown, through which protrudes out the samurai's long hair.
- Shikoro - This was an essential part of the samurai armor. Protecting vulnerable parts of the body such as the back of the head, the neck and the cheekbone, this was made of thick plates attached to the bowl of the helmet. Also, the top four plates of the Shikoro, could be inverted to form the fukigaeshi. This fukigaeshi could protect the the shikoros cords from getting sliced vertically.
- Mabisashi - The visor of the helmet, this was designed to have a cone like protrusion that would shield the samurai against downward strikes of the enemy.
As
mentioned earlier in the article, the yoroi was only used by the
horse-mounted samurai. Foot soldiers required much more flexibility
and hence wore a much lighter variety of armor known as the Do Maru. This
armor was designed so that it closely fitted the body of the foot soldier and
provided far more maneuverability. Later on, the mounted samurai too adopted the
Do Maru type of armors in place of the yoroi.
Though designed for protection during war, skilled craftsman made the armors a subject to showcase their artistic skills during peaceful periods of no war. The helmets, especially, became more and more elaborate and are considered excellent examples of artwork. Even to this day, interested collectors and appreciators of art, are enthusiastic about purchasing antique samurai armor suits.
About the Author: Scott Harker is the publisher of several websites including: Find happiness from a Fortune Cookie, Signs of Pregnancy, Sherlock Holmes Pastiches, Recycling, and Gynecomastia.
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