Section: Armor
Variable: Plate Armor (All coded records)
The absence or presence of plate_armor as a military technology used in warfare. Armor made of iron or steel plates.  
Plate Armor
#  Polity  Coded Value Tags Year(s) Edit Desc
1 Kachi Plain - Proto-Historic Period absent Confident Expert 1300 BCE 801 BCE
If "the first archaeologically recognizable, large post-Indus urban settlements are not earlier than the fifth century BC ... solidly visible states ... appear in a sudden profusion in the late first millennium B.C." [1] - who was king Stabrobates of India who used war elephants against a queen of Assyria (considered Shammuramat?) in the 9th century BCE? [2] One could infer king Stabrobates, if not based there himself, must have subdued and controlled the Kachi Plain region in order to invade Mesopotamia from ’India’. (Another source says Assyria invaded India and were driven out of Pakistan and India). [3] Diodorus Siculus says this too, queen Semiramis was based in Bactra (Bactria?). [4] If king Stabrobates’s polity controlled the Kachi Plain then we must code the according to the military technology he possessed. This would have included armour. Note: one military historian estimates that the Assyrian army had a strategic range of 2000 km [5] which places the Indus region in reach of their forces.

[1]: (Ahmed 2014, 64) Mukhtar Ahmed. 2014. Ancient Pakistan - An Archaeological History: Volume V: The End of the Harappan Civilization, and the Aftermath. Foursome Group.

[2]: (Mayor 2014, 289) Adrienne Mayor. Animals in Warfare. Gordon Lindsay Campbell. ed. 2014. The Oxford Handbook of Animals in Classical Thought and Life. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[3]: (Kistler 2007, 18) John M Kistler. 2007. War Elephants. University of Nebraska Press. Lincoln.

[4]: Diodorus Siculus. Delphi Complete Works of Diodorus Siculus. Delphi Classics.

[5]: (Gabriel 2002, 9) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


2 Early Xiongnu unknown Suspected Expert 1300 BCE 501 BCE
Plate armor from Iran appears to have been used by Steppe Nomads and has been coded present in other Steppe polities for different reasons. "Sauromatian bronze helmets and scale or plate armor not of local production appear in the Volga River region and southern Ural Steppes in the fifth-fourth century b.c., showing an increase in the exchange economy among neighboring communities." [1]

[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 42


3 Kachi Plain - Proto-Historic Period absent Inferred Expert 800 BCE
If "the first archaeologically recognizable, large post-Indus urban settlements are not earlier than the fifth century BC ... solidly visible states ... appear in a sudden profusion in the late first millennium B.C." [1] - who was king Stabrobates of India who used war elephants against a queen of Assyria (considered Shammuramat?) in the 9th century BCE? [2] One could infer king Stabrobates, if not based there himself, must have subdued and controlled the Kachi Plain region in order to invade Mesopotamia from ’India’. (Another source says Assyria invaded India and were driven out of Pakistan and India). [3] Diodorus Siculus says this too, queen Semiramis was based in Bactra (Bactria?). [4] If king Stabrobates’s polity controlled the Kachi Plain then we must code the according to the military technology he possessed. This would have included armour. Note: one military historian estimates that the Assyrian army had a strategic range of 2000 km [5] which places the Indus region in reach of their forces.

[1]: (Ahmed 2014, 64) Mukhtar Ahmed. 2014. Ancient Pakistan - An Archaeological History: Volume V: The End of the Harappan Civilization, and the Aftermath. Foursome Group.

[2]: (Mayor 2014, 289) Adrienne Mayor. Animals in Warfare. Gordon Lindsay Campbell. ed. 2014. The Oxford Handbook of Animals in Classical Thought and Life. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[3]: (Kistler 2007, 18) John M Kistler. 2007. War Elephants. University of Nebraska Press. Lincoln.

[4]: Diodorus Siculus. Delphi Complete Works of Diodorus Siculus. Delphi Classics.

[5]: (Gabriel 2002, 9) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


4 Kachi Plain - Proto-Historic Period absent Confident Expert 799 BCE 500 BCE
If "the first archaeologically recognizable, large post-Indus urban settlements are not earlier than the fifth century BC ... solidly visible states ... appear in a sudden profusion in the late first millennium B.C." [1] - who was king Stabrobates of India who used war elephants against a queen of Assyria (considered Shammuramat?) in the 9th century BCE? [2] One could infer king Stabrobates, if not based there himself, must have subdued and controlled the Kachi Plain region in order to invade Mesopotamia from ’India’. (Another source says Assyria invaded India and were driven out of Pakistan and India). [3] Diodorus Siculus says this too, queen Semiramis was based in Bactra (Bactria?). [4] If king Stabrobates’s polity controlled the Kachi Plain then we must code the according to the military technology he possessed. This would have included armour. Note: one military historian estimates that the Assyrian army had a strategic range of 2000 km [5] which places the Indus region in reach of their forces.

[1]: (Ahmed 2014, 64) Mukhtar Ahmed. 2014. Ancient Pakistan - An Archaeological History: Volume V: The End of the Harappan Civilization, and the Aftermath. Foursome Group.

[2]: (Mayor 2014, 289) Adrienne Mayor. Animals in Warfare. Gordon Lindsay Campbell. ed. 2014. The Oxford Handbook of Animals in Classical Thought and Life. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[3]: (Kistler 2007, 18) John M Kistler. 2007. War Elephants. University of Nebraska Press. Lincoln.

[4]: Diodorus Siculus. Delphi Complete Works of Diodorus Siculus. Delphi Classics.

[5]: (Gabriel 2002, 9) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


5 Roman Kingdom absent Inferred Expert 716 BCE 700 BCE
By 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1] This is a military historian’s opinion. Do Roman specialists agree?

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


6 Roman Kingdom unknown Suspected Expert 699 BCE 601 BCE
By 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1] This is a military historian’s opinion. Do Roman specialists agree?

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


7 Roman Kingdom present Confident Expert 600 BCE 509 BCE
By 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1] This is a military historian’s opinion. Do Roman specialists agree?

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


8 Early Xiongnu present Confident Expert 500 BCE 300 BCE
Plate armor from Iran appears to have been used by Steppe Nomads and has been coded present in other Steppe polities for different reasons. "Sauromatian bronze helmets and scale or plate armor not of local production appear in the Volga River region and southern Ural Steppes in the fifth-fourth century b.c., showing an increase in the exchange economy among neighboring communities." [1]

[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 42


9 French Kingdom - Late Capetian absent Confident Expert 1150 CE 1249 CE
The miles (mounted knight) was the core fighting unit and in this period he became a landed aristocrat. [1] Called a "heavy cavalryman". [1] Coat of plates "a defence made of several butted plates attached to a poncho-like fabric garment". [2] c1250-1330 CE: "development of weapons capable of piercing mail: the gradual introduction of pieces of plate (at first of whalebone, horn, and boiled leather, as well as of the iron and steel that ultimately prevailed) to cover an ever larger part of the mail). By 1330, every part of the body of a knight was nomally protected by one or several plates... By 1410, the various pieces of plate, including a breastplate and backplate instead of the earlier coat of plates, were all connected by straps and rivets in an articulated suit, or ’harness,’ of polished steel." [3]

[1]: (Hallam and Everard 2014) Elizabeth M Hallam. Judith Everard. 2014. Capetian France 987-1328. Second Edition. Routledge. London.

[2]: (Nicolle 2000, 15)

[3]: (Boulton 1995 67-68) Jonathan D Boulton. Armor And Weapons. William W Kibler. Grover A Zinn. Lawrence Earp. John Bell Henneman Jr. 1995. Routledge Revivals: Medieval France (1995): An Encyclopedia. Routledge. Abingdon.


10 French Kingdom - Late Capetian present Confident Expert 1250 CE 1328 CE
The miles (mounted knight) was the core fighting unit and in this period he became a landed aristocrat. [1] Called a "heavy cavalryman". [1] Coat of plates "a defence made of several butted plates attached to a poncho-like fabric garment". [2] c1250-1330 CE: "development of weapons capable of piercing mail: the gradual introduction of pieces of plate (at first of whalebone, horn, and boiled leather, as well as of the iron and steel that ultimately prevailed) to cover an ever larger part of the mail). By 1330, every part of the body of a knight was nomally protected by one or several plates... By 1410, the various pieces of plate, including a breastplate and backplate instead of the earlier coat of plates, were all connected by straps and rivets in an articulated suit, or ’harness,’ of polished steel." [3]

[1]: (Hallam and Everard 2014) Elizabeth M Hallam. Judith Everard. 2014. Capetian France 987-1328. Second Edition. Routledge. London.

[2]: (Nicolle 2000, 15)

[3]: (Boulton 1995 67-68) Jonathan D Boulton. Armor And Weapons. William W Kibler. Grover A Zinn. Lawrence Earp. John Bell Henneman Jr. 1995. Routledge Revivals: Medieval France (1995): An Encyclopedia. Routledge. Abingdon.


11 Hatti - New Kingdom absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
12 Yemen Ziyad Dynasty absent Inferred Expert -
Code inferred from Abbasid Caliphate [1] which occupied Yemen between 751-868 CE.

[1]: Hugh N Kennedy. 2001. The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the Early Islamic State. Routledge. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/SGPPFNAZ/q/kennedy


13 Chuuk - Late Truk absent Confident Expert -
-
14 Proto-Carolingian unknown Suspected Expert -
-
15 Middle Merovingian unknown Suspected Expert -
-
16 British Empire II absent Confident Expert -
-
17 Akan - Pre-Ashanti absent Confident Expert -
-
18 Archaic Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
19 Classical Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
20 The Emirate of Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
21 Final Postpalatial Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
22 Geometric Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
23 Hellenistic Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
24 Monopalatial Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
25 Neolithic Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
26 New Palace Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
27 Old Palace Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
28 Postpalatial Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
29 Prepalatial Crete absent Confident Expert -
-
30 Eastern Han Empire present Inferred Expert -
Western Han reference to " "plates stitched together and divided into several section for the chest, shoulder and collar." [1]

[1]: (Di Cosmo 2004, 234)


31 Western Jin present Inferred Expert -
Coat of plates cuirasses existed back in warring states times
32 Hmong - Early Chinese unknown Suspected Expert -
we need expert input in order to code this variable
33 Hmong - Late Qing unknown Suspected Expert -
we need expert input in order to code this variable
34 Longshan absent Confident Expert -
widespread use of armor seems to have developed alongside rise of large infantry forces only in Warring States period, 5th c bce [1] [2]

[1]: (Dien 1981)

[2]: (Tin-bor Hui 2005)


35 Northern Song present Confident Expert -
Coat made from hundreds of steel plates can been seen on statues.
36 Late Qing unknown Suspected Expert -
iron breast plates, used primarily for ceremonial or noble armor in the 19th century [1]
Naval technology

[1]: (Peers 2002, 232)


37 Tang Dynasty I present Inferred Expert -
Inferred from previous polity
38 Tang Dynasty II present Inferred Expert -
inferred from previous polity codes
39 Western Han Empire present Confident Expert -
Comprised "plates stitched together and divided into several section for the chest, shoulder and collar." [1]

[1]: (Di Cosmo 2004, 234)


40 Yangshao absent Confident Expert -
widespread use of armor seems to have developed alongside rise of large infantry forces only in Warring States period, 5th c bce [1] [2]

[1]: (Dien 1981)

[2]: (Tin-bor Hui 2005)


41 Shuar - Colonial absent Confident Expert -
The ethnographic record contains descriptions of caps and ornamentation rather than physical armor in the conventional sense of the term
42 Egypt - Inter-Occupation Period present Inferred Expert -
According to one military historian, by 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


43 Egypt - Mamluk Sultanate I absent Inferred Expert -
Not mentioned in sources so far consulted.
44 Egypt - Mamluk Sultanate II absent Inferred Expert -
Not mentioned in sources so far consulted.
45 Egypt - New Kingdom Thutmosid Period absent Inferred Expert -
"the Egyptians had been using bronze armor since the Eighteenth dynasty, "but it consisted of nothing more elaborate than metal scales sewn onto a leather base." [1]

[1]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) Fischer-Bovet (2014) Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge University Press


46 Egypt - Saite Period present Inferred Expert -
According to one military historian many by 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1] Saite used Greek mercenaries.

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


47 Egypt - Tulunid-Ikhshidid Period absent Inferred Expert -
Absent for Abbasid Caliphate. [1]

[1]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


48 Atlantic Complex absent Inferred Expert -
"The indications are therefore clear that sheet-metal armour started its life with the Urnfield period and had an earlier history in organic materials." [1]

[1]: (Harding 2000, 287)


49 French Kingdom - Late Bourbon present Confident Expert -
Steel breast-plate (cavalry - often not worn). Cuirasses (cavalry, Cuirassiers du Roi). Breastplate (Gardes du Corps).
50 Hallstatt A-B1 absent Confident Expert -
Not mentioned in the literature.
51 Hallstatt B2-3 unknown Suspected Expert -
Not mentioned in the literature.
52 Hallstatt C absent Confident Expert -
Not mentioned in the literature.

53 Hallstatt D absent Confident Expert -
Not mentioned in the literature.
54 Early Merovingian unknown Suspected Expert -


55 Hawaii I absent Confident Expert -
No metals at this time.
56 Iban - Pre-Brooke absent Confident Expert -
-
57 Iban - Brooke Raj and Colonial absent Confident Expert -
-
58 Kalingga Kingdom unknown Suspected Expert -
-
59 Mataram Sultanate unknown Suspected Expert -
-
60 Canaan absent Confident Expert -
-
61 Yehuda absent Confident Expert -
-
62 Yisrael absent Confident Expert -
-
63 Deccan - Iron Age unknown Suspected Expert -
-
64 Deccan - Neolithic absent Confident Expert -
-
65 Early A'chik absent Confident Expert -
-
66 Late A'chik absent Confident Expert -
-
67 Akkadian Empire absent Confident Expert -
-
68 Early Dynastic unknown Suspected Expert -
-
69 Ubaid absent Confident Expert -
-
70 Uruk unknown Suspected Expert -
-
71 Sasanid Empire II unknown Suspected Expert -
-
72 Latium - Bronze Age absent Confident Expert -
-
73 Latium - Copper Age absent Confident Expert -
-
74 Latium - Iron Age absent Confident Expert -
-
75 Ostrogothic Kingdom absent Confident Expert -
-
76 Papal States - Early Modern Period I present Confident Expert -
-
77 Papal States - Early Modern Period II present Confident Expert -
-
78 Exarchate of Ravenna unknown Confident Expert -
-
79 Kingdom of Ayodhya present Inferred Expert -
According to a military historian (needs confirmation from a polity specialist) after the Macedonian invasion use of "scale plate armor for horses and elephants" became more common. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 219-220) Gabriel, Richard A. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Greenwood Publishing Group.


80 Gupta Empire present Inferred Expert -
"The Guptas imitated the dress, equipment and the techniques of warfare as practised by the Central Asian nomads." [1]

[1]: (Roy 2016, 22) Kaushik Roy. 2016. Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. Abingdon.


81 Hoysala Kingdom present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [1]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


82 Mahajanapada era absent Confident Expert -
Introduced later.
83 Magadha - Maurya Empire present Inferred Expert -
According to a military historian (this needs confirmation from a Mauryan specialist) "scale plate armor for horses and elephants." [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 219-220) Gabriel, Richard A. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Greenwood Publishing Group.


84 Vijayanagara Empire present Confident Expert -
The leather armour worn by soldiers was reinforced by iron plates. [1]

[1]: (Ramayanna 1986, p. 127)


85 Abbasid Caliphate I absent Confident Expert -
[1]

[1]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


86 Abbasid Caliphate II absent Inferred Expert -
"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


87 Neo-Assyrian Empire present Confident Expert -
"knee-high, leather jackboot with thick leather soles complete with hobbed nails to improve traction. The boot had thin plates of iron sewn into the front to provide shin protection." [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 10) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


88 Susiana - Muhammad Jaffar absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.
89 Elymais II present Inferred Expert -
By 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


90 Formative Period absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.
91 Susiana A absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.
92 Susiana B absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.
93 Susiana - Late Ubaid absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.
94 Susiana - Early Ubaid absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.
95 Elam III absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1]

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.


96 Pre-Ceramic Period absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.
97 Sasanid Empire I unknown Confident Expert -


98 Seleucids present Inferred Expert -
According to one historian (experted needed to check data applicable to this polity) by 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


99 Susa I absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.
100 Susa II absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
101 Susa III absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
102 Icelandic Commonwealth absent Inferred Expert -
[There is evidence of the use of quilted garment (gambeson) which is made of linen and stuffed with wool from the 13th century onward.]
103 Rome - Republic of St Peter II absent Confident Expert -
The Papacy did not maintain arsenals or arms workshops during this period, and equipment most likely would have been furnished by troops.
104 Early Roman Republic present Inferred Expert -
By 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1] Need a Roman specialist to comment on this.

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


105 Western Roman Empire - Late Antiquity present Confident Expert -
-
106 Republic of St Peter I unknown Confident Expert -
-
107 OOpsian unknown Suspected Expert -
-
108 Western Turk Khaganate unknown Suspected Expert -
-
109 Phoenician Empire absent Confident Expert -
-
110 Jenne-jeno I absent Confident Expert -
-
111 Jenne-jeno II absent Confident Expert -
-
112 Jenne-jeno III absent Confident Expert -
-
113 Jenne-jeno IV present Confident Uncertain Expert -
-
114 Jenne-jeno IV absent Confident Uncertain Expert -
-
115 Eastern Turk Khaganate unknown Suspected Expert -
-
116 Khitan I unknown Suspected Expert -
-
117 Mongol Empire unknown Suspected Expert -
-
118 Early Mongols absent Confident Expert -
-
119 Late Mongols unknown Suspected Expert -
-
120 Rouran Khaganate unknown Suspected Expert -
-
121 Shiwei unknown Suspected Expert -
-
122 Second Turk Khaganate unknown Suspected Expert -
-
123 Uigur Khaganate unknown Suspected Expert -
-
124 Zungharian Empire unknown Suspected Expert -
-
125 Orokaiva - Pre-Colonial absent Confident Expert -
-
126 Orokaiva - Colonial absent Confident Expert -
-
127 Ashikaga Shogunate present Confident Expert -
Beginning in the end of the period. ‘Such suits, called nambando gusoku in Japanese, often incorporated two single-ridged, hammered iron sheets which were hinged on one side and fastened with cord on the other.’ [1] "The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [2] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [2]

[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.171.

[2]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


128 Asuka unknown Suspected Expert -
"Samurai protection from the 5th to 8th centuries, called ’tanko,’ was made of discrete, overlapping iron plates.’ [1] Does this armour count as plate armour or is it only scaled armour?

[1]: (Nolan 2006, 26) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.


129 Japan - Azuchi-Momoyama present Confident Expert -
‘Once firearms were introduced to Japan, armor requirements and designs changed once again. In addition to matchlock harquebuses, Western armor began to be imported into Japan from the late Muromachi period. Initially, Japanese warriors adapted Western cuirasses by simply attaching protective skirts and neck guards, but soon entire sets of body armor in Western styles began to be produced in Japan. Such suits, called nambando gusoku in Japanese, often incorporated two single-ridged, hammered iron sheets which were hinged on one side and fastened with cord on the other.’ [1] "The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [2] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [2]

[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.171.

[2]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


130 Japan - Incipient Jomon absent Confident Expert -
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
131 Japan - Initial Jomon absent Confident Expert -
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
132 Japan - Middle Jomon absent Confident Expert -
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
133 Tokugawa Shogunate present Confident Expert -
‘Such suits, called nambando gusoku in Japanese, often incorporated two single-ridged, hammered iron sheets which were hinged on one side and fastened with cord on the other.’ [1] "The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [2] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [2]

[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.171.

[2]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


134 Kara-Khanids unknown Suspected Expert -
"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." [1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


135 Khmer Kingdom absent Inferred Expert -
Jacq-Hergoualc’h’s (2007) in-depth and exhausting examination of Khmer armor discusses breastplates, rattan, resin-coated rattan, and thickly-braided cotton protective wear, but makes no mention of scaled armour, laminar armour, or plate armour. [1]

[1]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, Chapter 2)


136 Saadi Sultanate present Inferred Expert -
Present in Egypt at this time - the regime in the Morocco probably used weapons similar to those of its neighbours. We could also check - as yet unconsulted - references for Christians in contemporary Iberia who may have been used as mercenaries.
137 Segou Kingdom unknown Suspected Expert -
"Armour was apparently little used in the Western Sudan". [1]

[1]: (Smith 1989, 78) Robert Sydney Smith. 1989. Warfare & Diplomacy in Pre-colonial West Africa. Second Edition. The University of Wisconsin Press. Madison.


138 Early Monte Alban I absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


139 Byzantine Empire II present Confident Expert -
Preiser-Kapeller says present with a ?. [1]

[1]: (Preiser-Kapeller 2015) Institute for Medieval Research, Division of Byzantine Research, Austrian Academy of Sciences)


140 Konya Plain - Early Chalcolithic absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
141 Classic Basin of Mexico absent Confident Expert -
"There was little armor during the Early Classic, with the primary Teotihuacan innovation being the use of protective helmets of quilted cotton." [1]

[1]: (Hassig 1992: 48) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG.


142 Oaxaca - Tierras Largas absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


143 Cuzco - Early Intermediate I absent Confident Expert -
Although there is no information on the warfare of this period, it is highly unlikely the resources were available for this technology.
144 Cuzco - Late Intermediate I absent Confident Expert -
This technology is not known to have been developed anywhere in the Americas before European colonization.
145 Inca Empire absent Confident Expert -
This technology is not known to have been developed anywhere in the Americas before European colonization.
146 Kachi Plain - Chalcolithic absent Confident Expert -
Only flint, bone and copper tools tools have been found at Mehrgarh [1]

[1]: Petrie, C. A. (in press) Chapter 11, Case Study: Mehrgarh. In, Barker, G and Goucher, C (eds.) Cambridge World History, Volume 2: A World with Agriculture, 12,000 BCE - 500 CE. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge


147 Kachi Plain - Pre-Urban Period absent Confident Expert -
-
148 Yemen - Era of Warlords absent Inferred Expert -
Code inferred from Abbasid Caliphate [1] which occupied Yemen between 751-868 CE.

[1]: Hugh N Kennedy. 2001. The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the Early Islamic State. Routledge. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/SGPPFNAZ/q/kennedy


149 Sind - Abbasid-Fatimid Period absent Confident Expert -
-
150 Umayyad Caliphate absent Confident Expert -
-
151 Sarazm unknown Suspected Expert -
-
152 Hatti - Old Kingdom absent Confident Expert -
-
153 Cahokia - Lohman-Stirling absent Confident Expert -
-
154 Cahokia - Moorehead absent Confident Expert -
-
155 Haudenosaunee Confederacy - Early absent Confident Expert -
-
156 Cahokia - Early Woodland absent Confident Expert -
-
157 Cahokia - Emergent Mississippian II absent Confident Expert -
-
158 Cahokia - Late Woodland II absent Confident Expert -
-
159 Cahokia - Middle Woodland absent Confident Expert -
-
160 Cahokia - Late Woodland III absent Confident Expert -
-
161 Cahokia - Late Woodland I absent Confident Expert -
-
162 Cahokia - Sand Prairie absent Confident Expert -
-
163 Cahokia - Emergent Mississippian I absent Confident Expert -
-
164 Ancient Khwarazm unknown Suspected Expert -
-
165 Koktepe II unknown Suspected Expert -
-
166 Yemen - Qasimid Dynasty unknown Suspected Expert -
-
167 Rasulid Dynasty unknown Suspected Expert -
-
168 Yemen - Tahirid Dynasty unknown Suspected Expert -
-
169 Durrani Empire present Confident Expert -
Worn by cavalry. [1]

[1]: Roy, Kaushik. War, Culture and Society in Early Modern South Asia, 1740-1849. Taylor & Francis, 2011. pp. 30-35


170 Ghur Principality present Confident Expert -
Horse armour (bar-gustuwan). [1] Exported cuirasses. [2] Ghaznavid and Ghurid armies: heavy armour. [3]

[1]: (Jackson 2003, 17) Peter Jackson. 2003. The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[2]: (Nizami 1999, 178) K A Nizami. The Ghurids. M S Asimov. C E Bosworth. eds. 1999. History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Volume IV. Part One. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited. Delhi.

[3]: (Wink 1997, 89-90) Andre Wink. 1997. Al-Hind the Making of the Indo-Islamic World. Volume II: The Slave Kings and the Islamic Conquest 11th-13th Centuries. BRILL. Leiden.


171 Greco-Bactrian Kingdom present Confident Expert -
The coins from the period show muscled cuirass. [1] There is also some limited archaeological evidence. [2]

[1]: Sidky, H., The Greek Kingdom of Bactria, from Alexander to Eucratides the Great, Oxford, 2000, pp. 168-169

[2]: Nikonorov, Valeri P., and Serge A. Savchuk. "New Data on Ancient Bactrian Body-Armour (In the Light of Finds from Kampyr Tepe)." Iran (1992): 49-54.


172 Badarian absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available. "By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


173 Qajar present Confident Expert -
"Cuirass (char-a’ina). Iran, Qajar period, early 19th century. Steel, gold, and textile." [1]

[1]: (Phyrr 2015, 6) Stuart W Phyrr. 2015. American Collectors and the Formation of the Metropolitan Museum’s Collection of Islamic Arms and Armor. David G Alexander. ed. Islamic Arms and Armor in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Yale University Press. New Haven.


174 Sind - Samma Dynasty absent Confident Expert -
[1]

[1]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


175 Egypt - Kushite Period absent Inferred Expert -
"the Egyptians had been using bronze armor since the Eighteenth dynasty, "but it consisted of nothing more elaborate than metal scales sewn onto a leather base." [1]

[1]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) Fischer-Bovet (2014) Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge University Press


176 Ayutthaya unknown Suspected Expert -
No references identified in the literature. RA.
177 Rattanakosin unknown Suspected Expert -
No references in the literature.
178 Konya Plain - Early Bronze Age absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
179 Konya Plain - Late Bronze Age II absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
180 Lysimachus Kingdom present Inferred Expert -
By 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


181 Konya Plain - Early Neolithic absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
182 Konya Plain - Late Neolithic absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
183 Ottoman Emirate present Confident Expert -
[1]

[1]: (Nicolle 1983, 23)


184 Ottoman Empire II present Confident Expert -
"Arab auxiliary, early 17th C." with mail-and-plate cuirass and coif" [1]

[1]: (Nicolle 1983, Plate F + 37)


185 Phrygian Kingdom absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
186 Tabal Kingdoms unknown Suspected Expert -
not mentioned in literature
187 Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period absent Confident Expert -
[1]

[1]: Kuykendall, Ralph S. 1968[1938]. The Hawaiian Kingdom, Volume 1: 1778-1854, Foundation and Transformation. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.


188 Kushan Empire present Confident Expert -
Armour seems to have included the muscle cuirass. Kings are shown on coins wearing scale shaped plates, and some evidence from archaeological digs have found iron plates. [1] "Sauromatian bronze helmets and scale or plate armor not of local production appear in the Volga River region and southern Ural Steppes in the fifth-fourth century b.c., showing an increase in the exchange economy among neighboring communities." [2] Saka warriors who destroyed the Greco-Bactrian city of Ai Khanoum in 145 BCE (and may have used similar military technology to the Kushan nomads) left illustrations in Sogdia (Orlat) depicting chainmail, domed helmets, high-collared metal-plated corselets. [3]

[1]: The armies of Bactria 70 BC-450 AD p. 57

[2]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 42

[3]: (McLaughlin 2016, 76) Raoul McLaughlin. 2016. The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes: The Ancient World Economy and the Empires of Parthia, Central Asia and Han China. Pen and Sword History. Barnsley.


189 Tocharians present Confident Expert -
Plate armor from Iran appears to have been used by Steppe Nomads and has been coded present in other Steppe polities for different reasons. "Sauromatian bronze helmets and scale or plate armor not of local production appear in the Volga River region and southern Ural Steppes in the fifth-fourth century b.c., showing an increase in the exchange economy among neighboring communities." [1]

[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 42


190 Erligang absent Confident Expert -
widespread use of armor seems to have developed alongside rise of large infantry forces only in Warring States period, 5th c bce [1] [2]

[1]: (Dien 1981)

[2]: (Tin-bor Hui 2005)


191 Erlitou absent Confident Expert -
Widespread use of armor seems to have developed alongside rise of large infantry forces only in Warring States period, 5th c bce [1] [2]

[1]: (Dien 1981)

[2]: (Tin-bor Hui 2005)


192 Jin present Confident Expert -
Traditional view: "Mounted warfare in Chinese armies began in the sixth century BCE, while the increasing projectile power of composite bows and especially the crossbow from the fifth century BCE led to the rise of heavy armour." [1] However, there is evidence heavy armour existed in the preceding Western Zhou: "... suit has yet been unearthed, but a bronze breastplate and two bronze backplates have been found in a Western Zhou ..." [2]

[1]: (Günergun and Raina 2010, 65) Günergun, Feza. Raina, Dhruv. 2010. Science between Europe and Asia: Historical Studies on the Transmission, Adoption and Adaptation of Knowledge. Springer Science & Business Media

[2]: (Hong 1992, 84) Hong, Yang. 1992. Weapons in Ancient China. Science Press.


193 Great Ming present Inferred Expert -
"this armour cannot be considered a plate armour in its truest sense. The Chinese lack necessary metallurgical expertise to develop full plate armour (with the possible exception of late Ming period Guangdong), and they did not seem to import plate armour directly from the Europeans like their Japanese and Indian neighbours either. ... The Quan Tie Jia (全鐵甲, ’Full iron armour’) is made of several large lacquered iron or steel plates sewn to a backing made from thick cotton (or calico) fabric. The edges of these metal plates are wrapped with thrice-folded coarse fabric, likely to prevent chafing. In this regard, the Quan Tie Jia more closely resemble Russian Zertsalo (Зерцало) armour in construction than European full plate." [1]

[1]: http://greatmingmilitary.blogspot.com/2015/02/plate-armour-of-ming-dynasty.html


194 Northern Wei present Inferred Expert -
Coat of plates cuirasses existed back in warring states times
195 Peiligang absent Confident Expert -
Widespread use of armor seems to have developed alongside rise of large infantry forces only in Warring States period, 5th c. BCE. [1] [2]

[1]: (Dien 1981) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/F82EE9ZF.

[2]: (Tin-bor Hui 2005) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/CSPZPNV5?.


196 Early Qing present Inferred Expert -
coded inferred present for Ming. For high-ranking officers; "copper gilt plates alternating with brocade and copper studs." A lower-ranking soldier wore a long coat of quilted nankeen cotton or a thickly wadded jacket of bark-pulp paper "covered with thin plates of metal surrounded by brass studs." [1]

[1]: (Garrett, 2007, 28)


197 Late Shang absent Inferred Expert -
widespread use of armor seems to have developed alongside rise of large infantry forces only in Warring States period, 5th c bce [1] [2]

[1]: (Dien 1981)

[2]: (Tin-bor Hui 2005)


198 Sui Dynasty present Inferred Expert -
Liang-tang armor worn during the Six Dynasties period: "One piece in the front and one in back, which we will call breastplate and backplate...joined by straps over the shoulders and a skirt attached below." [1]

[1]: (Dien 1981, 26) Dien, Albert E. 1981. A Study of Early Chinese Armor. Artibus Asiae 43.1/2: 5-66.


199 Early Wei Dynasty present Inferred Expert -
[1] "The elite troops in the state of Wei had to wear heavy armor and helmets" [2]

[1]: (Peers 2013, 31)

[2]: (Ebrey and Walthall 2013, 23) Ebrey, Patricia. Walthall, Anne. 2013. Pre-Modern East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History, Volume I: To 1800. Cengage Learning.


200 Western Zhou present Confident Expert -
Traditional view: "Mounted warfare in Chinese armies began in the sixth century BCE, while the increasing projectile power of composite bows and especially the crossbow from the fifth century BCE led to the rise of heavy armour." [1] However, there is evidence heavy armour existed in the Western Zhou: "... suit has yet been unearthed, but a bronze breastplate and two bronze backplates have been found in a Western Zhou ..." [2]

[1]: (Günergun and Raina 2010, 65) Günergun, Feza. Raina, Dhruv. 2010. Science between Europe and Asia: Historical Studies on the Transmission, Adoption and Adaptation of Knowledge. Springer Science & Business Media

[2]: (Hong 1992, 84) Hong, Yang. 1992. Weapons in Ancient China. Science Press.


201 Neguanje absent Confident Expert -
No discussion in literature of this. In this case it is evidence of absence since this is in line with logical expectations for this late-complexity society.
202 Tairona absent Confident Expert -
No discussion in literature of this. In this case it is evidence of absence since this is in line with logical expectations for this late-complexity society.
203 Shuar - Ecuadorian absent Confident Expert -
The ethnographic record contains descriptions of caps and ornamentation rather than physical armor in the conventional sense of the term
204 Egypt - Dynasty I absent Confident Expert -
"The soldiers of the Old and Middle Kingdom wore no armour. In the Old Kingdom they are usually depicted wearing only a belt and a small triangular loincloth, and by the Middle Kingdom their costume was invariably the same short linen kilt as that worn by civilian workmen. [...] From the late Predynastic Period to the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian soldiers’ only bodily protection (apart from the occasional use of a band of webbing across the shoulders and chest) was supplied by long, roughly rectangular shields made of cowhide stretched over a wooden frame." [1]

[1]: (Shaw 1991: 32) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.


205 Egypt - Dynasty II absent Confident Expert -
"The soldiers of the Old and Middle Kingdom wore no armour. In the Old Kingdom they are usually depicted wearing only a belt and a small triangular loincloth, and by the Middle Kingdom their costume was invariably the same short linen kilt as that worn by civilian workmen. [...] From the late Predynastic Period to the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian soldiers’ only bodily protection (apart from the occasional use of a band of webbing across the shoulders and chest) was supplied by long, roughly rectangular shields made of cowhide stretched over a wooden frame." [1]

[1]: (Shaw 1991: 32) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.


206 Egypt - Mamluk Sultanate III present Confident Expert -
Mail and plate cuirass. [1]

[1]: (Nicolle 2014) Nicolle, D. 2014 Mamluk Askar 1250-1517. Osprey Publishing Ltd.


207 Egypt - Middle Kingdom absent Confident Expert -
"The soldiers of the Old and Middle Kingdom wore no armour. In the Old Kingdom they are usually depicted wearing only a belt and a small triangular loincloth, and by the Middle Kingdom their costume was invariably the same short linen kilt as that worn by civilian workmen. [...] From the late Predynastic Period to the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian soldiers’ only bodily protection (apart from the occasional use of a band of webbing across the shoulders and chest) was supplied by long, roughly rectangular shields made of cowhide stretched over a wooden frame." [1]

[1]: (Shaw 1991: 32) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.


208 Naqada II absent Confident Expert -
"From the late Predynastic Period to the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian soldiers’ only bodily protection (apart from the occasional use of a band of webbing across the shoulders and chest) was supplied by long, roughly rectangular shields made of cowhide stretched over a wooden frame." [1] [1]

[1]: (Shaw 1991: 32) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.


209 Egypt - Dynasty 0 absent Confident Expert -
"From the late Predynastic Period to the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian soldiers’ only bodily protection (apart from the occasional use of a band of webbing across the shoulders and chest) was supplied by long, roughly rectangular shields made of cowhide stretched over a wooden frame." [1] [1]

[1]: (Shaw 1991: 32) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.


210 Egypt - New Kingdom Ramesside Period absent Confident Expert -
"the Egyptians had been using bronze armor since the Eighteenth dynasty, "but it consisted of nothing more elaborate than metal scales sewn onto a leather base." [1] Bronze scale armor on short-sleeved, knee length shirt made out of linen or leather. [2] "Body armour, in the form of small bronze plates riveted to linen or leather jerkins, was introduced by the early New Kingdom". [3]

[1]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) Fischer-Bovet (2014) Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge University Press

[2]: (Gnirs 2001)

[3]: (Shaw 1991: 42) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.


211 Beaker Culture absent Confident Expert -
"Protective equipment is virtually unknown before the third millennium and was only seriously developed in the Bronze Age, when weapons became common and conflict more formalized and predictable." [1]

[1]: (McIntosh 2006, 299)


212 Egypt - Classic Old Kingdom absent Confident Expert -
"The soldiers of the Old and Middle Kingdom wore no armour. In the Old Kingdom they are usually depicted wearing only a belt and a small triangular loincloth, and by the Middle Kingdom their costume was invariably the same short linen kilt as that worn by civilian workmen. [...] From the late Predynastic Period to the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian soldiers’ only bodily protection (apart from the occasional use of a band of webbing across the shoulders and chest) was supplied by long, roughly rectangular shields made of cowhide stretched over a wooden frame." [1] Armour not worn during 3rd millennium BCE. [2]

[1]: (Shaw 1991: 32) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.

[2]: (Spalinger 2013, 472)


213 La Tene A-B1 absent Inferred Expert -
The only mention of armour is chainmail. "Diodorus also mentions that some warriors wear iron breast plates of chain mail. Seated figures of stone from the sanctuary of Roquepertuse (Fig.163) and a stone statue of a Gaul from Vachères (Basse-Alpes) (Pl. VI), dating to the late first century BC, are shown wearing chain mail, and actual examples have been found in a few burials, including that of the warrior provided with the bird-crested helmet, who was buried at Ciumesti. One of the features of Celtic warfare which impressed itself upon the Classical mind was the fact that some warriors fought naked except for the sword belt and a gold neck torc." [1]

[1]: (Cunliffe 2000, 98-99)


214 Wari Empire absent Confident Expert -
This technology is not known to have been developed anywhere in the Americas before European colonization.
215 Egypt - Late Old Kingdom absent Confident Expert -
"The soldiers of the Old and Middle Kingdom wore no armour. In the Old Kingdom they are usually depicted wearing only a belt and a small triangular loincloth, and by the Middle Kingdom their costume was invariably the same short linen kilt as that worn by civilian workmen. [...] From the late Predynastic Period to the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian soldiers’ only bodily protection (apart from the occasional use of a band of webbing across the shoulders and chest) was supplied by long, roughly rectangular shields made of cowhide stretched over a wooden frame." [1] Armour not worn during 3rd millennium BCE. [2]

[1]: (Shaw 1991: 32) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.

[2]: (Spalinger 2013, 472)


216 Ptolemaic Kingdom I present Inferred Expert -
According to one military historian by 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1] "the bronze plate-armor, the two handed shield and the Corinthian one-piece helmet were Greek innovations, and the Greeks were also experienced in melting and working iron." [2] Tempered steel was probably not in use. Bronze breastplates, helmets, greaves, and shields were commonly in use.

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.

[2]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) Fischer-Bovet (2014) Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge University Press


217 Ptolemaic Kingdom II present Confident Expert -
According to one military historian by 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1] "the bronze plate-armor, the two handed shield and the Corinthian one-piece helmet were Greek innovations, and the Greeks were also experienced in melting and working iron." [2] Tempered steel was probably not in use. Bronze breastplates, helmets, greaves, and shields were commonly in use.

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.

[2]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) Fischer-Bovet (2014) Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge University Press


218 Egypt - Period of the Regions absent Confident Expert -
"The soldiers of the Old and Middle Kingdom wore no armour. In the Old Kingdom they are usually depicted wearing only a belt and a small triangular loincloth, and by the Middle Kingdom their costume was invariably the same short linen kilt as that worn by civilian workmen. [...] From the late Predynastic Period to the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian soldiers’ only bodily protection (apart from the occasional use of a band of webbing across the shoulders and chest) was supplied by long, roughly rectangular shields made of cowhide stretched over a wooden frame." [1]

[1]: (Shaw 1991: 32) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF.


219 Egypt - Thebes-Hyksos Period absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available. "the Egyptians had been using bronze armor since the Eighteenth dynasty, "but it consisted of nothing more elaborate than metal scales sewn onto a leather base." [1] 18th Dynasty: mid-late 2nd millennium BCE.

[1]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) Fischer-Bovet (2014) Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge University Press


220 Egypt - Thebes-Libyan Period absent Confident Expert -
"the Egyptians had been using bronze armor since the Eighteenth dynasty, "but it consisted of nothing more elaborate than metal scales sewn onto a leather base." [1]

[1]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) Fischer-Bovet (2014) Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge University Press


221 Spanish Empire I present Confident Expert -
"The widespread use of firearms and waning popularity of jousting tournaments caused a steep decline in the production of armor in the seventeenth century. Because the symbolic value of armor outlived its effectiveness in battle, sumptuous examples were still made as diplomatic gifts and appeared in portraits of members of the royal family." [1] “Captains and wealthier nobles might have three-quarter armour, consisting of a closed helmet, curiass (breastplate), arm defences, and leg defences that ended at the knees. Those of lesser means made do with a helmet and some form of leather or cotton armour. In time, however, the Spanish began to favour the native-style quilted cotton armour, which was far more comfortable to wear in the humid climate of the New World.” [2]

[1]: “The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain. National Gallery of Art. Web. Accessed May 5, 2017. https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/WHH6KD3N)

[2]: (Pemberton 2011, preview) Pemberton, John. 2011. Conquistadors: Searching for El Dorado: The Terrifying Spanish Conquest of the Aztec and Inca Empires. Canary Press eBooks Limited. https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/3SI549GS


222 Xiongnu Imperial Confederation present Inferred Expert -
Armor plates were found in house No 49 at Ivolginskoe. [1] Plate armor from Iran appears to have been used by Steppe Nomads and has been coded present in other Steppe polities for different reasons: "Sauromatian bronze helmets and scale or plate armor not of local production appear in the Volga River region and southern Ural Steppes in the fifth-fourth century b.c., showing an increase in the exchange economy among neighboring communities." [2]

[1]: (Kradin 2010, 249)

[2]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 42


223 French Kingdom - Early Bourbon present Confident Expert -
The cuirass counts as plate armour. "The full suit of body armor was thus a product of the end of the age of armor, and still in use into the 16th century. But personal plate became ineffective and obsolete with introduction of more powerful firearms capable of using corned gunpowder, which gave far greater penetrating power to handguns and cannon. At that point, the weight of ever-thickening plate became too great a burden: a fully articulated suit of 16th-century plate weighed 60 pounds." [1] Mercenary professionals: "By the 17th century most had discarded all armor other than a helmet and cuirass". [2] "By the mid-17th century even cavalry units, which were still predominantly aristocratic in origin, discarded most armor other than the helm and breastplate. Leg armor went first, replaced by three-quarter leather skirts. ... By the end of the 17th century only bits and pieces of burnished metal survived here and there, and then mostly as polished ceremonial accouterments for officers-on-parade." [2]

[1]: (Nolan 2006, 25) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.

[2]: (Nolan 2006, 26) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.


224 Cuzco - Late Formative absent Confident Expert -
Although there is no information on the warfare of this period, it is highly unlikely the resources were available for this technology.
225 Proto-French Kingdom absent Inferred Expert -
The miles (mounted knight) was the core fighting unit and in this period he became a landed aristocrat. [1] Called a "heavy cavalryman". [1] c1250-1330 CE: "development of weapons capable of piercing mail: the gradual introduction of pieces of plate (at first of whalebone, horn, and boiled leather, as well as of the iron and steel that ultimately prevailed) to cover an ever larger part of the mail). By 1330, every part of the body of a knight was nomally protected by one or several plates... By 1410, the various pieces of plate, including a breastplate and backplate instead of the earlier coat of plates, were all connected by straps and rivets in an articulated suit, or ’harness,’ of polished steel." [2]

[1]: (Hallam and Everard 2014) Elizabeth M Hallam. Judith Everard. 2014. Capetian France 987-1328. Second Edition. Routledge. London.

[2]: (Boulton 1995 67-68) Jonathan D Boulton. Armor And Weapons. William W Kibler. Grover A Zinn. Lawrence Earp. John Bell Henneman Jr. 1995. Routledge Revivals: Medieval France (1995): An Encyclopedia. Routledge. Abingdon.


226 Carolingian Empire I absent Confident Expert -
The few who could afford it used body armour. [1] The military retinue of kings and magnates (including clergy) "had the most complete equipment and were virtually professional warriors." [2] David Baker says absent. [3] c1250-1330 CE: "development of weapons capable of piercing mail: the gradual introduction of pieces of plate (at first of whalebone, horn, and boiled leather, as well as of the iron and steel that ultimately prevailed) to cover an ever larger part of the mail). By 1330, every part of the body of a knight was normally protected by one or several plates... By 1410, the various pieces of plate, including a breastplate and backplate instead of the earlier coat of plates, were all connected by straps and rivets in an articulated suit, or ’harness,’ of polished steel." [4] David Baker says absent. [3]

[1]: (Hooper and Bennett 1996, 12) Nicholas Hooper. Matthew Bennett. 1996. The Cambridge Illustrated Atlas of Warfare: The Middle Ages, 768-1487. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[2]: (Hooper and Bennett 1996, 14) Nicholas Hooper. Matthew Bennett. 1996. The Cambridge Illustrated Atlas of Warfare: The Middle Ages, 768-1487. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[3]: David Baker. Personal communication to Seshat Databank.

[4]: (Boulton 1995 67-68) Jonathan D Boulton. Armor And Weapons. William W Kibler. Grover A Zinn. Lawrence Earp. John Bell Henneman Jr. 1995. Routledge Revivals: Medieval France (1995): An Encyclopedia. Routledge. Abingdon.


227 Carolingian Empire II absent Confident Expert -
The few who could afford it used body armour. [1] The military retinue of kings and magnates (including clergy) "had the most complete equipment and were virtually professional warriors." [2] David Baker says absent. [3] c1250-1330 CE: "development of weapons capable of piercing mail: the gradual introduction of pieces of plate (at first of whalebone, horn, and boiled leather, as well as of the iron and steel that ultimately prevailed) to cover an ever larger part of the mail). By 1330, every part of the body of a knight was normally protected by one or several plates... By 1410, the various pieces of plate, including a breastplate and backplate instead of the earlier coat of plates, were all connected by straps and rivets in an articulated suit, or ’harness,’ of polished steel." [4]

[1]: (Hooper and Bennett 1996, 12) Nicholas Hooper. Matthew Bennett. 1996. The Cambridge Illustrated Atlas of Warfare: The Middle Ages, 768-1487. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[2]: (Hooper and Bennett 1996, 14) Nicholas Hooper. Matthew Bennett. 1996. The Cambridge Illustrated Atlas of Warfare: The Middle Ages, 768-1487. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[3]: David Baker. Personal communication to Seshat Databank.

[4]: (Boulton 1995 67-68) Jonathan D Boulton. Armor And Weapons. William W Kibler. Grover A Zinn. Lawrence Earp. John Bell Henneman Jr. 1995. Routledge Revivals: Medieval France (1995): An Encyclopedia. Routledge. Abingdon.


228 Ur - Dynasty III absent Confident Expert -
"The first recorded instance of body armor is found on the Stele of Vultures in ancient Sumer, which shows Eannatum’s soldiers wearing leather cloaks on which are sewn spined metal disks. The disks do not appear to be arranged in any order, and we do not know if the disks were made of copper or bronze. By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [1] Coding this as scale armor.

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


229 La Tene B2-C1 absent Inferred Expert -
Warrior culture: burials with iron swords, helmets, spears, shields. [1] The only mention of armour is chainmail. "Diodorus also mentions that some warriors wear iron breast plates of chain mail. Seated figures of stone from the sanctuary of Roquepertuse (Fig.163) and a stone statue of a Gaul from Vachères (Basse-Alpes) (Pl. VI), dating to the late first century BC, are shown wearing chain mail, and actual examples have been found in a few burials, including that of the warrior provided with the bird-crested helmet, who was buried at Ciumesti. One of the features of Celtic warfare which impressed itself upon the Classical mind was the fact that some warriors fought naked except for the sword belt and a gold neck torc." [2]

[1]: (Wells 1999, 45-47)

[2]: (Cunliffe 2000, 98-99)


230 La Tene C2-D absent Inferred Expert -
The only mention of armour is chainmail. "Diodorus also mentions that some warriors wear iron breast plates of chain mail. Seated figures of stone from the sanctuary of Roquepertuse (Fig.163) and a stone statue of a Gaul from Vachères (Basse-Alpes) (Pl. VI), dating to the late first century BC, are shown wearing chain mail, and actual examples have been found in a few burials, including that of the warrior provided with the bird-crested helmet, who was buried at Ciumesti. One of the features of Celtic warfare which impressed itself upon the Classical mind was the fact that some warriors fought naked except for the sword belt and a gold neck torc." [1]

[1]: (Cunliffe 2000, 98-99)


231 French Kingdom - Early Valois present Confident Expert -
Coat of plates "a defence made of several butted plates attached to a poncho-like fabric garment" [1] Breastplate late 13th century. [2] Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453 CE) reference: typical French knight wore "plate armor for shoulders and limbs topped by a bascinet, a metal helmet with projecting hinged visors and air holes. Instead of the surcoat, they wore a shorter leather jupon, and their warhorses were also armored, with plate covering their heads and mail or leather their flanks." [3] Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453 CE) reference: plate armour for horses. [3]

[1]: (Nicolle 2000, 15) David Nicolle. 2000. French Armies Of The Hundred Years War. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[2]: (Nicolle 2000, 19) David Nicolle. 2000. French Armies Of The Hundred Years War. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[3]: (Wagner 2006, 27-29) John A Wagner. 2006. Encyclopedia of the Hundred Years War. Greenwood Press. Westport.


232 French Kingdom - Late Valois present Confident Expert -
As much as "350 lbs" - surely a typo for 35 lbs, or 15.9kg - after 1500 CE due to emergence of gunshot. [1] Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453 CE) reference: typical French knight wore "plate armor for shoulders and limbs topped by a bascinet, a metal helmet with projecting hinged visors and air holes. Instead of the surcoat, they wore a shorter leather jupon, and their warhorses were also armored, with plate covering their heads and mail or leather their flanks." [2] Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453 CE) reference: pollaxe: 4-6 foot wooden shaft with spike and axehead. [3]

[1]: (Potter 2008, 78-79)

[2]: (Wagner 2006, 27-29) John A Wagner. 2006. Encyclopedia of the Hundred Years War. Greenwood Press. Westport.

[3]: (Wagner 2006, 27) John A Wagner. 2006. Encyclopedia of the Hundred Years War. Greenwood Press. Westport.


233 Ashanti Empire absent Confident Expert -
’The custom of wearing talismanic war garments was well established by the nineteenth century, and some were worn with other northern appurtenances. ‘Their vest was of red cloth, covered with fetishes and saphies in gold and silver; and embroidered cases of almost every colour, which flapped against their bodies as they moved, intermixed with small brass bells, the horns and tails of animals, shells, and knives; long leopards tails hung down their backs, over a small bow covered with fetishes. They wore loose cotton trowsers [ sic], with immense boots of a dull red leather, coming half way up the thigh, and fastened by small chains to their cartouch or waist belt; these were also ornamented with bells, horses tails, strings of amulets, and innumerable shreds of leather; a small quiver of poisoned arrows hung from their right wrist, and they held a long iron chain between their teeth, with a scrap of Moorish writing affixed to the end of it.’ [1]

[1]: McLeod, M. D. (Malcolm D.) 1981. “Asante”, 147


234 Hawaii II absent Confident Expert -
No metals at this time.
235 Hawaii III absent Confident Expert -
No metals at this time.
236 Elam - Kidinuid Period absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1] "By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [2] Coding this as scale armor.

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.

[2]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


237 Java - Buni Culture unknown Suspected Expert -
According to the Chinese Nan chou i wu chih (A Record of Strange Things in the Southern Regions) written about 222-228 CE a volcanic country called ’Ge-ying’ (thought to be western Java) traded with the Malay Peninsula and imported horses from India. They were used by warriors. [1] It is likely they had some basic armour. Metallurgy was introduced after the third century BCE [2] so in addition to imported items, they may have had the ability to smith their own armour.

[1]: (Miksic and Goh 2017, 215) John Norman Miksic. Geok Yian Goh. Routledge. 2017. Ancient Southeast Asia. London. p. 215

[2]: (Bellwood 2004, 36) Bellwood, Peter. The origins and dispersals of agricultural communities in Southeast Asia. Glover, Ian. Bellwood, Peter. eds. 2004. Southeast Asia: From Prehistory to History. RoutledgeCurzon. London.


238 Kediri Kingdom unknown Suspected Expert -
The Borobudur reliefs depict armour but do not specify which kinds. [1] Old Mataram was a ’highly Indianized culture’ until it was replaced by an East Javanese one "that increasingly promoted various elements of the island’s older indigenous traditions." [2] Indian military terms surviving in Javanese include ’armour, shield, helmet’. [3]

[1]: (Draeger 1972, 23) D F Draeger. 1972. Weapons and Fighting Arts of Indonesia. Tuttle Publishing.

[2]: (Unesco 2005, 233) Unesco. 2005. The Restoration of Borobudur. Unesco.

[3]: (Kumara 2007, 161) Sasiprabha Kumara. 2007. Sanskrit Across Cultures. Special Centre for Sanskrit Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. New Delhi.


239 Majapahit Kingdom unknown Suspected Expert -
"After the formation of the Majapahit Dynasty, however, weapons and warfare underwent significant changes. The military dress completely evolved from the Indian to the East Javanese fashion." [1] Indian military terms surviving in Javanese include ’armour, shield, helmet’. [2] The Borobudur reliefs depicted armour but do not specify which kinds. [3]

[1]: (Powell 2002, 325) John Powell. 2002. Weapons & Warfare: Ancient and medieval weapons and warfare (to 1500). Salem Press.

[2]: (Kumara 2007, 161) Sasiprabha Kumara. 2007. Sanskrit Across Cultures. Special Centre for Sanskrit Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. New Delhi.

[3]: (Draeger 1972, 23) D F Draeger. 1972. Weapons and Fighting Arts of Indonesia. Tuttle Publishing.


240 Medang Kingdom unknown Suspected Expert -
Old Mataram was a ’highly Indianized culture’ until it was replaced by an East Javanese one "that increasingly promoted various elements of the island’s older indigenous traditions." [1] Indian military terms surviving in Javanese include ’armour, shield, helmet’. [2]

[1]: (Unesco 2005, 233) Unesco. 2005. The Restoration of Borobudur. Unesco.

[2]: (Kumara 2007, 161) Sasiprabha Kumara. 2007. Sanskrit Across Cultures. Special Centre for Sanskrit Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. New Delhi.


241 Chalukyas of Badami present Inferred Expert -
Ancient Indians used iron for armour cuirasses and breastplates but copper was also used. [1] "Several Chalukyan epigraphs refer to kavacha or armour. A good number of sculptures at Badami, Aihole and Pattadakal show not only armoured soldiers but also caparisoned horses. Metal armours served as shields against attack by enemies, protecting both men and animal forces." [2] Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal plate, cuirass, corselet and breast plate. [3]

[1]: (Singh 1997) Sarva Daman Singh. 1997. Ancient Indian Warfare: With Special Reference to the Vedic Period. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. Delhi.

[2]: (Dikshit 1980, 266) Durga Prasad Dikshit. 1980. Political History of the Chalukyas of Badami. Abhinav Publications. New Delhi.

[3]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


242 Chalukyas of Kalyani present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [1]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


243 Post-Mauryan Kingdoms present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet and breast plate. [1]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


244 Delhi Sultanate present Confident Expert -
According to Ibn Battuta in 1333 Delhi forces employed heavy-armoured cavalry. [1] Elephant armour (bargustawan-i-pil) included plate. [2]

[1]: (Jackson 2003, 17) Peter Jackson. 2003. The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[2]: (Bloom and Blair eds. 2009, 137) Johnathan M Bloom. Sheila S Blair. eds. 2009. Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art & Architecture: Three-Volume Set. Volume I. Abarquh To Dawlat Qatar. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


245 Gahadavala Dynasty present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [1] According to Kamandaka’s Nitisara c650 CE elephants were equipped with iron plates. [2] There is no scholarly agreement on the date of Kamandaka’s Nitisara (an advice for rulers genre text) which is "the principal source for understanding the norms and techniques of warfare in north India". It is dated by different scholars to between 400-550 CE, 500-700 CE, or as late as 800 CE. Kaushik Roy suggests the post-Harsha period. [3] Under chapter 9 "The Rajput Administration": "Elephants had their bodies covered with armour and tasks [tusks?] provided with arms." [4] "Further details about military dress and equipment can be had from the Kathakosaprakarana, Yasastilaka champu and the Tilakamanjari." [4]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[2]: (Roy 2013, 29) Kaushik Roy. 2013 Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. London.

[3]: (Roy 2012, 137) Kaushik Roy. 2012. Hinduism and the Ethics of Warfare in South Asia: From Antiquity to the Present. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[4]: (Bakshi, Gajrani and Singh eds 2005, 394) S R Bakshi. S Gajrani. Hari Singh. eds. 2005. Early Aryans to Swaraj. Volume 3: Indian Education and Rajputs. Sarup & Sons. New Delhi.


246 Elam - Igihalkid Period absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1] "By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [2] Coding this as scale armor.

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.

[2]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


247 Gurjar-Pratihara Dynasty present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [1] According to Kamandaka’s Nitisara c650 CE elephants were equipped with iron plates. [2] There is no scholarly agreement on the date of Kamandaka’s Nitisara (an advice for rulers genre text) which is "the principal source for understanding the norms and techniques of warfare in north India". It is dated by different scholars to between 400-550 CE, 500-700 CE, or as late as 800 CE. Kaushik Roy suggests the post-Harsha period. [3] Soldiers of the Pala Empire after 750 CE - the core of which was located in the southern reaches of the Ganges Basin to the east of this polity and at its height possessed territory all the way to Afghanistan - wore plate armour and conical-shaped helmets. [4]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[2]: (Roy 2013, 29) Kaushik Roy. 2013 Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. London.

[3]: (Roy 2012, 137) Kaushik Roy. 2012. Hinduism and the Ethics of Warfare in South Asia: From Antiquity to the Present. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[4]: (Lomazoff and Ralby 2013) Amanda Lomazoff. Aaron Ralby. 2013. The Atlas of Military History. Simon and Schuster. San Diego.


248 Kadamba Empire present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [1]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


249 Kampili Kingdom present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [1]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


250 Kannauj - Varman Dynasty present Confident Expert -
Corslet: "In the Uttararama-carita a great contingent of soldiers armed with corslets, staves and quivers..." [1]

[1]: (Mishra 1977, 146) Shyam Manohar Mishra. 1977. Yaśovarman of Kanauj: A Study of Political History, Social, and Cultural Life of Northern India During the Reign of Yaśovarman. Abhinav Publications.


251 Achaemenid Empire present Inferred Expert -
"Of the Medes and Persians as a whole, only a few wore armour. Some had body armour of iron scales and wicker targes and only some of the cavalry wore helmets of bronze or iron. As both Greek mercenaries and Assyrians were amongst the best armed in this great force, one may assume that any armour worn by Persians was inspired by one or the other of these militant peoples." [1] Breastplates present. Isn’t that the same thing as "plate" armour? Present in previous and subsequent periods.

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


252 Safavid Empire present Confident Expert -
e.g. the Chahar-Ayned [lit. "four mirrors"] - four armour plates wrapped round the torso. [1] Iron plate armour: "four iron plates covering chest and back with a hole for the arms on the two side pieces was an innovation of the Safavid Period." [2]

[1]: Farrokh, Kaveh. Iran at War, 1500-1988. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2011., chapter three.

[2]: (Powell 2010, 626) Powell, John. 2010. Weapons & Warfare: Modern weapons and warfare (since c. 1500). Salem Press.


253 Magadha present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [1] According to Kamandaka’s Nitisara c650 CE elephants were equipped with iron plates. [2] There is no scholarly agreement on the date of Kamandaka’s Nitisara (an advice for rulers genre text) which is "the principal source for understanding the norms and techniques of warfare in north India". It is dated by different scholars to between 400-550 CE, 500-700 CE, or as late as 800 CE. Kaushik Roy suggests the post-Harsha period. [3] Soldiers of the Pala Empire after 750 CE - the core of which was located in the southern reaches of the Ganges Basin to the east of this polity and at its height possessed territory all the way to Afghanistan - wore plate armour and conical-shaped helmets. [4]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[2]: (Roy 2013, 29) Kaushik Roy. 2013 Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. London.

[3]: (Roy 2012, 137) Kaushik Roy. 2012. Hinduism and the Ethics of Warfare in South Asia: From Antiquity to the Present. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.

[4]: (Lomazoff and Ralby 2013) Amanda Lomazoff. Aaron Ralby. 2013. The Atlas of Military History. Simon and Schuster. San Diego.


254 Mughal Empire present Confident Expert -
Chahar-a,inah - breastplate, backplate, connecting side pieces. [1]

[1]: William Irvine, The army of the Indian Moghuls: its organization and administration (1903),p565.


255 Rashtrakuta Empire present Inferred Expert -
Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [1]

[1]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


256 Satavahana Empire present Confident Expert -
Ancient Indians used iron for armour cuirasses and breastplates but copper was also used. [1] Likely referring to time following the Macedonian invasion. Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [2]

[1]: (Singh 1997) Sarva Daman Singh. 1997. Ancient Indian Warfare: With Special Reference to the Vedic Period. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. Delhi.

[2]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


257 Magadha - Sunga Empire present Inferred Expert -
According to one military historian (this data needs to be confirmed by a polity specialist): "What evidence we have suggests that from Vedic times until the coming of the Greeks, only slight use was made of body armor, and most of that was of the leather or textile variety." [1] Inferred from continuity with Mauryan polity . [2] This quotation does not rule out use of body armour or metal armour, and the Sunga Empire post-dates the Greek invasion.

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 219) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies Of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.

[2]: (Roy 2016, 19) Kaushik Roy. 2016. Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. Abingdon.


258 Vakataka Kingdom present Confident Expert -
Ancient Indians used iron for armour cuirasses and breastplates but copper was also used. [1] Vakataka "soldiers were provided with armours and helmets." [2] Kautilya’s Arthasastra, written after 200 BCE, mentions a metal coat of mail, metal fabric, metal plate, cuirass, corselet, and breast plate. [3]

[1]: (Singh 1997) Sarva Daman Singh. 1997. Ancient Indian Warfare: With Special Reference to the Vedic Period. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. Delhi.

[2]: (Majumdar and Altekar 1986, 277) Anant Sadashiv Altekar. The Administrative Organisation. Ramesh Chandra Majumdar. Anant Sadashiv Altekar. 1986. Vakataka - Gupta Age Circa 200-550 A.D. Motilal Banarsidass. Delhi.

[3]: (Olivelle 2016, 142-143) Patrick Olivelle trans. 2016. King, Governance, and Law in Ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


259 Bazi Dynasty absent Confident Expert -
"Protection against weapons was still generally made of leather or thick felt, although the later second millennium saw growing use among those who could afford it of body armor made of overlapping copper or bronze platelets sewn onto the leather. It became more common in the first millennium, now made with iron rather than bronze scales." [1]

[1]: (McIntosh 2005: 190) McIntosh, J. 2005. Ancient Mesopotamia: New Perspective. Santa Barbara: ABC Clio. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/KK2E3KMD.


260 Dynasty of E absent Confident Expert -
"Protection against weapons was still generally made of leather or thick felt, although the later second millennium saw growing use among those who could afford it of body armor made of overlapping copper or bronze platelets sewn onto the leather. It became more common in the first millennium, now made with iron rather than bronze scales." [1]

[1]: (McIntosh 2005: 190) McIntosh, J. 2005. Ancient Mesopotamia: New Perspective. Santa Barbara: ABC Clio. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/KK2E3KMD.


261 Second Dynasty of Isin absent Confident Expert -
"Protection against weapons was still generally made of leather or thick felt, although the later second millennium saw growing use among those who could afford it of body armor made of overlapping copper or bronze platelets sewn onto the leather. It became more common in the first millennium, now made with iron rather than bronze scales." [1]

[1]: (McIntosh 2005: 190) McIntosh, J. 2005. Ancient Mesopotamia: New Perspective. Santa Barbara: ABC Clio. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/KK2E3KMD.


262 Isin-Larsa absent Confident Expert -
"Protection against weapons was still generally made of leather or thick felt, although the later second millennium saw growing use among those who could afford it of body armor made of overlapping copper or bronze platelets sewn onto the leather. It became more common in the first millennium, now made with iron rather than bronze scales." [1]

[1]: (McIntosh 2005: 190) McIntosh, J. 2005. Ancient Mesopotamia: New Perspective. Santa Barbara: ABC Clio. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/KK2E3KMD.


263 Neo-Babylonian Empire present Inferred Expert -
Present in previous and subsequent polities.
264 Bamana kingdom unknown Suspected Expert -
"Armour was apparently little used in the Western Sudan". [1]

[1]: (Smith 1989, 78) Robert Sydney Smith. 1989. Warfare & Diplomacy in Pre-colonial West Africa. Second Edition. The University of Wisconsin Press. Madison.


265 Ak Koyunlu present Confident Expert -
"The Ak Koyunlu were the natural enemies of the Ottomans who, however, unwittingly aided the preservation of samples of their armour and weaponry by capturing the entire Ak Koyunlu baggage train at the battle of Otluk Beli in 1473. This equipment was shifted to the armoury of St. Irene in Istanbul." [1] "This mail and plate armour is characteristic of the Ak Koyunlu Turkoman". [2]

[1]: 1991. Islamic and Indian Art, Oriental Manuscripts and Miniatures. Sotheby’s. page 56.

[2]: (Jones ed. 2012, 92-93) Gareth Jones. ed. The Military History Book: The Ultimate Visual Guide to the Weapons that Shaped the World. Dorling Kindersley Limited. London.


266 Elam - Awan Dynasty I absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available. According to a military historian (a polity specialist needs to check this data): "The first recorded instance of body armor is found on the Stele of Vultures in ancient Sumer, which shows Eannatum’s soldiers wearing leather cloaks on which are sewn spined metal disks. The disks do not appear to be arranged in any order, and we do not know if the disks were made of copper or bronze. By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [1] Coding this as scale armor so absent.

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


267 Buyid Confederation absent Inferred Expert -
"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Unknown? if Sassanids used plate armour, whilst absent for the Abbasids. [2]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


268 Elam - Crisis Period absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1] The Late Bronze and Early Iron Age in Northwestern Iran: ‘Other major object and material categories include iron and bronze armor’. [2] Is this relevant? What was this metal armour? "By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [3] Coding this as scale armor.

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.

[2]: Michael D. Danti, ‘The Late Bronze and Early Iron Age in Northwestern Iran’, In Daniel T. Potts (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Ancient Iran, 2013, p. 359

[3]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


269 Ilkhanate unknown Suspected Expert -
No reference to plate armour. Plate armour more typical for heavy cavalry which carried lances rather than horsemen with bows. However, some Mongol cavalry carried lances. [1]

[1]: Martin, H. Desmond. “The Mongol Army.” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, no. 1 (April 1, 1943): 52.


270 Elam - Shutrukid Period absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1] The Late Bronze and Early Iron Age in Northwestern Iran: ‘Other major object and material categories include iron and bronze armor’. [2] Is this relevant? What was this metal armour? "By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [3] Coding this as scale armor.

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.

[2]: Michael D. Danti, ‘The Late Bronze and Early Iron Age in Northwestern Iran’, In Daniel T. Potts (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Ancient Iran, 2013, p. 359

[3]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


271 Elam I absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1] The Late Bronze and Early Iron Age in Northwestern Iran: ‘Other major object and material categories include iron and bronze armor’. [2] Is this relevant? What was this metal armour?

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.

[2]: Michael D. Danti, ‘The Late Bronze and Early Iron Age in Northwestern Iran’, In Daniel T. Potts (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Ancient Iran, 2013, p. 359


272 Parthian Empire I present Confident Expert -
Used to protect men and horses. [1] Suit of armour found at Nisa and another in a 4th century BCE tomb at Tchirik-rabat. [2]

[1]: Wiesehöfer, Josef, Ancient Persia: From 550 BC to 650 AD, trans. by Azizeh Azodi (London ; New York: I.B. Tauris, 1996), p.148.

[2]: (Raschke 1976, 821) Raschke, Manfred G. in Haase, Wolfgang ed. 1976. Politische Geschichte (Provinzen und Randvölker: Mesopotamien, Armenien, Iran, Südarabien, Rom und der Ferne Osten). Walter de Gruyter.


273 Parthian Empire II present Confident Expert -
Used to protect men and horses. [1] Suit of armour found at Nisa and another in a 4th century BCE tomb at Tchirik-rabat. [2]

[1]: Wiesehöfer, Josef, Ancient Persia: From 550 BC to 650 AD, trans. by Azizeh Azodi (London ; New York: I.B. Tauris, 1996), p.148.

[2]: (Raschke 1976, 821) Raschke, Manfred G. in Haase, Wolfgang ed. 1976. Politische Geschichte (Provinzen und Randvölker: Mesopotamien, Armenien, Iran, Südarabien, Rom und der Ferne Osten). Walter de Gruyter.


274 Toltecs absent Confident Expert -
"There were two types of armor, full body and left arm, both made of quilted cotton." [1]

[1]: (Hassig 1992: 114) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG.


275 Seljuk Sultanate unknown Confident Expert -
"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." [1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


276 Elam - Shimashki Period absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1] "By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [2] Coding this as scale armor.

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.

[2]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


277 Elam - Early Sukkalmah absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1] "By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [2] Coding this as scale armor.

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.

[2]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


278 Elam - Late Sukkalmah absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1] "By 2100 BCE the victory stele of Naram Sin appears to show plate armor, and it is likely that plate armor had been in wide use for a few hundred years. Plate armor was constructed of thin bronze plates sewn to a leather shirt or jerkin." [2] Coding this as scale armor.

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.

[2]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


279 Papal States - High Medieval Period present Confident Expert -
Approximate transition date 1250 CE. [1] General reference for this time period in Europe: by end of fourteenth century complete suits of plate armour were being used. With time the metal composition was improved from iron, eventually to high quality steel. [2]

[1]: (Boulton 1995, 124-127)

[2]: (Rogers 2007, 31) Clifford J Rogers. 2007. Soldiers’ Lives Through History: The Middle Ages. Greenwood Press. Westport.


280 Papal States - Renaissance Period present Confident Expert -
General reference for this time period in Europe: by end of fourteenth century complete suits of plate armour were being used. With time the metal composition was improved from iron, eventually to high quality steel. [1]

[1]: (Rogers 2007, 31) Clifford J Rogers. 2007. Soldiers’ Lives Through History: The Middle Ages. Greenwood Press. Westport.


281 Middle Roman Republic present Inferred Expert -
Military historian suggests that by 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


282 Roman Empire - Principate present Confident Expert -
lorica segmentata, as depicted on Trajan’s Column. "Strips of iron held together and articulated with leather straps and copper alloy fittings" [1]

[1]: (Pollard and Berry 2012, 44)


283 Republic of Venice III present Confident Expert -
General reference for medieval warfare: "Plate armor was developed beginning in the thirteenth century." [1] General reference for medieval warfare: Full-plate armor. [2] General reference for medieval warfare: c1320 CE "Full plate arm defenses appeared". [3] General reference for medieval warfare: "From about 1340, the plates covering the chest were combined to form a rudimentary breastplate, which first covered only the upper chest area. ... By about 1370 the breastplate was extended downward by means of an attached skirt of hoops, a fauld, so that the whole torso was protected." [3] General reference for medieval warfare: "The increasing use of gunpowder weapons as well as changes in tactics and the increasing sizes of armies led to the demise of armor in the seventeeth century." [4] Illustration shows "Knight, Collato family, c.1340" with a helmet, guantlets, sword, dagger, limb protection including plate armour for the feet, lower legs and knees. [5] Illustration shows horse armour which includes non-metallic (quilting, leather?) and metallic (plate) elements. [6] Illustration shows "Venetian infantryman, late 14th C." with a spear, sword, helmet, shield, guantlets, and plate armour for lower legs. [6] Illustrations show plate armour covering the torso for "Dalmatian knight, mid-15th C." [7] and "Venetian man-at-arms, late 15th C." [7] Illustration shows "Venetian man-at-arms, late 15th C." in full plate armour holding a spear and carrying a sword. [7] Illustration shows "Venetian light cavalryman, c.1500" wearing full plate armour, holding a sword and carrying a dagger. [8] Illustration shows "Venetian knight, c.1600" with a sword, full plate armour and shield. [9] Illustration shows "Venetian arquebusier, early 17th C." holding an arquebus, carrying a sword, wearing plate armour covering the torso and a helmet. [10]

[1]: (Smith 2010, 68) Robert Douglas Smith. Armor, Body. Clifford J. Rogers. ed. 2010. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[2]: (Smith 2010, 69) Robert Douglas Smith. Armor, Body. Clifford J. Rogers. ed. 2010. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[3]: (Smith 2010, 70) Robert Douglas Smith. Armor, Body. Clifford J. Rogers. ed. 2010. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[4]: (Smith 2010, 73) Robert Douglas Smith. Armor, Body. Clifford J. Rogers. ed. 2010. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[5]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate B) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[6]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate C) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[7]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate E) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[8]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate F) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[9]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate G) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[10]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate H) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.


284 Republic of Venice IV present Confident Expert -
General reference for medieval warfare: "Plate armor was developed beginning in the thirteenth century." [1] General reference for medieval warfare: Full-plate armor. [2] General reference for medieval warfare: c1320 CE "Full plate arm defenses appeared". [3] General reference for medieval warfare: "From about 1340, the plates covering the chest were combined to form a rudimentary breastplate, which first covered only the upper chest area. ... By about 1370 the breastplate was extended downward by means of an attached skirt of hoops, a fauld, so that the whole torso was protected." [3] General reference for medieval warfare: "The increasing use of gunpowder weapons as well as changes in tactics and the increasing sizes of armies led to the demise of armor in the seventeeth century." [4] Illustrations show plate armour covering the torso for "Dalmatian knight, mid-15th C." [5] and "Venetian man-at-arms, late 15th C." [5] Illustration shows "Venetian man-at-arms, late 15th C." in full plate armour holding a spear and carrying a sword. [5] Illustration shows "Venetian light cavalryman, c.1500" wearing full plate armour, holding a sword and carrying a dagger. [6] Illustration shows "Venetian knight, c.1600" with a sword, full plate armour and shield. [7] Illustration shows "Venetian arquebusier, early 17th C." holding an arquebus, carrying a sword, wearing plate armour covering the torso and a helmet. [8]

[1]: (Smith 2010, 68) Robert Douglas Smith. Armor, Body. Clifford J. Rogers. ed. 2010. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[2]: (Smith 2010, 69) Robert Douglas Smith. Armor, Body. Clifford J. Rogers. ed. 2010. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[3]: (Smith 2010, 70) Robert Douglas Smith. Armor, Body. Clifford J. Rogers. ed. 2010. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[4]: (Smith 2010, 73) Robert Douglas Smith. Armor, Body. Clifford J. Rogers. ed. 2010. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. Oxford.

[5]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate E) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[6]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate F) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[7]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate G) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.

[8]: (Nicolle 1989, Plate H) David Nicolle. 1989. The Venetian Empire 1200-1670. Osprey Publishing. Oxford.


285 Kingdom of Norway II present Inferred Expert -
[There is evidence of the use of quilted garment (gambeson) which is made of linen and stuffed with wool from the 13th century onward.]
286 Heian present Confident Uncertain Expert -
"The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [1] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [1]

[1]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


287 Heian absent Confident Uncertain Expert -
"The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [1] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [1]

[1]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


288 Japan - Early Jomon absent Confident Expert -
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
289 Japan - Late Jomon absent Confident Expert -
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
290 Japan - Final Jomon absent Confident Expert -
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
291 Late Xiongnu present Inferred Expert -
Armor plates were found in house No 49 at Ivolginskoe. [1] Plate armor from Iran appears to have been used by Steppe Nomads and has been coded present in other Steppe polities for different reasons. "Sauromatian bronze helmets and scale or plate armor not of local production appear in the Volga River region and southern Ural Steppes in the fifth-fourth century b.c., showing an increase in the exchange economy among neighboring communities." [2]

[1]: (Kradin 2010, 249)

[2]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 42


292 Kamakura Shogunate present Confident Expert -
"The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [1] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [1]

[1]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


293 Kansai - Kofun Period absent Confident Expert -
"Samurai protection from the 5th to 8th centuries, called ’tanko,’ was made of discrete, overlapping iron plates.’ [1] Does this count as plate armor or is it scaled armor?

[1]: (Nolan 2006, 26) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.


294 Funan II absent Inferred Expert -
Jacq-Hergoualc’h’s (2007) in-depth and exhausting examination of Khmer armor discusses breastplates, rattan, resin-coated rattan, and thickly-braided cotton protective wear, but makes no mention of scaled armour, laminar armour, or plate armour. [1] Given that the later Khmer polity did not have plate armor this suggests that this earlier polity didn’t either.

[1]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, Chapter 2)


295 Andronovo unknown Suspected Expert -
Vedic for ’breastplate’ is Indo-Iranian. [1] Not everyone agrees Vedic culture was descendant from, and thus can tell us about, Andronovo culture. [2]

[1]: (Kuz’mina 2007, 137) Elena Efimovna Kuzʹmina. 2007. The Origin of the Indo-Iranians. J P Mallory ed. BRILL. Leiden.

[2]: (Lamberg-Karlovsky 144-145) C C Lamberg-Karlovsky. 2005. Archaeology and language: the case of the Bronze Age Indo-Iranians. Edwin Francis Bryant. Laurie L Patton. eds. The Indo-Aryan Controversy: Evidence and Inference in Indian History. Routledge. Abingdon.


296 Nara Kingdom present Confident Uncertain Expert -
"The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [1] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [1]

[1]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


297 Nara Kingdom absent Confident Uncertain Expert -
"The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [1] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [1]

[1]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


298 Kingdom of Lydia present Inferred Expert -
By 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


299 Konya Plain - Ceramic Neolithic absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
300 Neo-Hittite Kingdoms absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
Naval technology
301 Warring States Japan present Confident Expert -
"The earliest armor used in Japan, as elsewhere, was padded or made of scales or rings sewn on cloth. The armor found in the grove mounds of prior to 400 B.C. is made by riveting together small pieces of iron to make helmets and cuirasses. Some of the latter give quite the effect of plate armor but are built up of small pieces. By the 10th century, the earliest time of which we have definite knowledge, it had assumed a characteristic form which it retained until armor was abandoned in the middle of the 19th century. A Japanese suit, fig. 78, consists of a helmet, kabuto, usually made of a large number of narrow plates riveted together with raised edges at the joints. It has a small peak, maizashi, in front and a wide neck guard, shikoro, made of strips of steel or of scales of leather or steel laced together with heavy silk or leather cords. One or more of these pieces is turned back in front to form ear guards, fukigayeshi. The front is usually decorated with two horn-like pieces, kuwagata, representing the leaves of a water plant; between them is an ornament, maidate, corresponding to the European crest. The face is covered by a steel mask, menpo, to which a laminated neck guard, yodare-kake, is attached. There are five varieties of menpo - covering the entire face - all of the face below the eyes - the forehead and cheeks only - and two for the cheeks and chin only. Of these, the second is much most used. A gorget, nodowa, was sometimes worn but was not considered as a regular part of the suit. The body was enclosed in a corselet, do, made of plates or strips laced together with silk or leather cords. It either opened at the side, do-maru, or at the back haramaki-do. Attached to it were shoulder pieces, watagami, from which it hung. The taces, kusazuri, made of strips laced together, hung from the do. Under these was worn an apron, hai-date, of brocade covered with mail or mixed plate and mail. The legs below the knee were protected by close fitting greaves, sune-ate, of plate; and the feet were covered with bearskin shoes, tsurumaki, or with mail or plate tabi. The arm guards, kote, were brocade sleeves covered with mixed plate and mail. They usually ended in guantlets which covered only the backs of the hands and thumbs. Mail guantlets were rare but were sometimes used. Large guards, sode, were hung on the shoulders. They were either single plates, two hinged together or made up of strops or rows of scales laced together." [1] "The Japanese made more varieties of mail than all the rest of the world put together." [1]

[1]: (Stone 1999, 60-61) George Cameron Stone. 1999. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications, Inc. Mineola.


302 Classical Angkor absent Inferred Expert -
Jacq-Hergoualc’h’s (2007) in-depth and exhausting examination of Khmer armor discusses breastplates, rattan, resin-coated rattan, and thickly-braided cotton protective wear, but makes no mention of scaled armour, laminar armour, or plate armour. [1]

[1]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, Chapter 2)


303 Early Angkor absent Inferred Expert -
Jacq-Hergoualc’h’s (2007) in-depth and exhausting examination of Khmer armor discusses breastplates, rattan, resin-coated rattan, and thickly-braided cotton protective wear, but makes no mention of scaled armour, laminar armour, or plate armour. [1]

[1]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, Chapter 2)


304 Late Angkor absent Inferred Expert -
Jacq-Hergoualc’h’s (2007) in-depth and exhausting examination of Khmer armor discusses breastplates, rattan, resin-coated rattan, and thickly-braided cotton protective wear, but makes no mention of scaled armour, laminar armour, or plate armour.(Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, Chapter 2);
305 Chenla absent Inferred Expert -
Jacq-Hergoualc’h’s (2007) in-depth and exhausting examination of Khmer armor discusses breastplates, rattan, resin-coated rattan, and thickly-braided cotton protective wear, but makes no mention of scaled armour, laminar armour, or plate armour. [1] Given that the later Khmer polity did not have plate armor this suggests that this earlier polity didn’t either.

[1]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, Chapter 2)


306 Funan I absent Inferred Expert -
Jacq-Hergoualc’h’s (2007) in-depth and exhausting examination of Khmer armor discusses breastplates, rattan, resin-coated rattan, and thickly-braided cotton protective wear, but makes no mention of scaled armour, laminar armour, or plate armour. [1] Given that the later Khmer polity did not have plate armor this suggests that this earlier polity didn’t either.

[1]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, Chapter 2)


307 Mali Empire present Inferred Expert -
Knights: "The princes of Black Africa who could afford to outfitted themselves in complete or partial armor like that of the knights of the Western Middle Ages." [1] "coat of mail and iron breastplate, helmet, boots, javelin ... all of it." [2] However, due to climate complete knightly armour not as common as in Europe and in fact Songhai Askia Bano died of suffocation. [2] 1000-1650 CE period: "body armor was rare. Among the cavalry empires of the Sahel and sudan, quilted horse and body armor were common but plate was rarely used." [3]

[1]: (Diop 1987, 116) Diop, Cheikh Anta. Salemson, Harold trans. 1987. Precolonial Black Africa. Lawrence Hill Books. Chicago.

[2]: (Diop 1987, 117) Diop, Cheikh Anta. Salemson, Harold trans. 1987. Precolonial Black Africa. Lawrence Hill Books. Chicago.

[3]: (Nolan 2006, 27) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.


308 Songhai Empire - Askiya Dynasty present Inferred Expert -
The songhay knight, like his French counterpart, wore a great helm, a hauberk, chainmail, an iron plate armour, a helmet and used a javelin. "Le chevalier songhoy, comme son homologue de l’Ile de France, portait heaume et haubert, cottes de mailles, cuirasse de fer, casque et javelot." [1] 1000-1650 CE period: "body armor was rare. Among the cavalry empires of the Sahel and sudan, quilted horse and body armor were common but plate was rarely used." [2]

[1]: (Niane 1975, 122)

[2]: (Nolan 2006, 27) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.


309 Xianbei Confederation present Inferred Expert -
Plate armor from Iran appears to have been used by Steppe Nomads and has been coded present in other Steppe polities for different reasons. "Sauromatian bronze helmets and scale or plate armor not of local production appear in the Volga River region and southern Ural Steppes in the fifth-fourth century b.c., showing an increase in the exchange economy among neighboring communities." [1]

[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 42


310 Later Wagadu Empire present Confident Uncertain Expert -
Knights: "The princes of Black Africa who could afford to outfitted themselves in complete or partial armor like that of the knights of the Western Middle Ages." [1] "coat of mail and iron breastplate, helmet, boots, javelin ... all of it." [2] However, due to climate complete knightly armour not as common as in Europe and in fact Songhai Askia Bano died of suffocation. [2] 1000-1650 CE period: "body armor was rare. Among the cavalry empires of the Sahel and sudan, quilted horse and body armor were common but plate was rarely used." [3]

[1]: (Diop 1987, 116) Diop, Cheikh Anta. Salemson, Harold trans. 1987. Precolonial Black Africa. Lawrence Hill Books. Chicago.

[2]: (Diop 1987, 117) Diop, Cheikh Anta. Salemson, Harold trans. 1987. Precolonial Black Africa. Lawrence Hill Books. Chicago.

[3]: (Nolan 2006, 27) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.


311 Later Wagadu Empire absent Confident Uncertain Expert -
Knights: "The princes of Black Africa who could afford to outfitted themselves in complete or partial armor like that of the knights of the Western Middle Ages." [1] "coat of mail and iron breastplate, helmet, boots, javelin ... all of it." [2] However, due to climate complete knightly armour not as common as in Europe and in fact Songhai Askia Bano died of suffocation. [2] 1000-1650 CE period: "body armor was rare. Among the cavalry empires of the Sahel and sudan, quilted horse and body armor were common but plate was rarely used." [3]

[1]: (Diop 1987, 116) Diop, Cheikh Anta. Salemson, Harold trans. 1987. Precolonial Black Africa. Lawrence Hill Books. Chicago.

[2]: (Diop 1987, 117) Diop, Cheikh Anta. Salemson, Harold trans. 1987. Precolonial Black Africa. Lawrence Hill Books. Chicago.

[3]: (Nolan 2006, 27) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.


312 Cuzco - Early Intermediate II absent Confident Expert -
Although there is no information on the warfare of this period, it is highly unlikely the resources were available for this technology.
313 Cuzco - Late Intermediate II absent Confident Expert -
This technology is not known to have been developed anywhere in the Americas before European colonization.
314 Middle Wagadu Empire unknown Suspected Expert -
Knights: "The princes of Black Africa who could afford to outfitted themselves in complete or partial armor like that of the knights of the Western Middle Ages." [1] "coat of mail and iron breastplate, helmet, boots, javelin ... all of it." [2] However, due to climate complete knightly armour not as common as in Europe and in fact Songhai Askia Bano died of suffocation. [2] 1000-1650 CE period: "body armor was rare. Among the cavalry empires of the Sahel and sudan, quilted horse and body armor were common but plate was rarely used." [3]

[1]: (Diop 1987, 116) Diop, Cheikh Anta. Salemson, Harold trans. 1987. Precolonial Black Africa. Lawrence Hill Books. Chicago.

[2]: (Diop 1987, 117) Diop, Cheikh Anta. Salemson, Harold trans. 1987. Precolonial Black Africa. Lawrence Hill Books. Chicago.

[3]: (Nolan 2006, 27) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport.


315 Monte Alban Late I absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


316 Monte Alban II absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


317 Monte Alban III absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


318 Monte Alban IIIB and IV absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


319 Monte Alban V absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


320 Late Formative Basin of Mexico absent Confident Expert -
The first evidence for the introduction of indigenously produced (copper-based) metallurgy in Mesoamerica is c.600 CE for ornamental valuables, [1] and the system closest to coinage ever practiced in Mesoamerica was the widespread use of cacao beans and copper axes as media of exchange during the Postclassic. [2]

[1]: Shugar, Aaron N. and Scott E. Simmons. (2013) Archaeometallurgy in Mesoamerica: Current Approaches and New Perspectives. Boulder: University Press of Colorado, pg. 1-4.

[2]: Berdan, Frances F., Marilyn A. Masson, Janine Gasco, and Michael E. Smith. (2003) "An International Economy." In Michael E. Smith and Frances F. Berdan (eds.) The Postclassic Mesoamerican World. Salt Lake City: The University of Utah Press, pg. 102.


321 Terminal Formative Basin of Mexico absent Confident Expert -
The first evidence for the introduction of indigenously produced (copper-based) metallurgy in Mesoamerica is c.600 CE for ornamental valuables, [1] and the system closest to coinage ever practiced in Mesoamerica was the widespread use of cacao beans and copper axes as media of exchange during the Postclassic. [2]

[1]: Shugar, Aaron N. and Scott E. Simmons. (2013) Archaeometallurgy in Mesoamerica: Current Approaches and New Perspectives. Boulder: University Press of Colorado, pg. 1-4.

[2]: Berdan, Frances F., Marilyn A. Masson, Janine Gasco, and Michael E. Smith. (2003) "An International Economy." In Michael E. Smith and Frances F. Berdan (eds.) The Postclassic Mesoamerican World. Salt Lake City: The University of Utah Press, pg. 102.


322 Middle Postclassic Basin of Mexico absent Confident Expert -
"Most of the basic Mesoamerican armaments were in existence at this time [Classic period] - atlatls, darts, and spears, we well as clubs (bladed and unbladed), shields, cotton body armor, and unit standards [...] This military organization and technology was carried forward and elaborated on first by Toltecs and then by Aztecs". [1]

[1]: (Hassig 1992: 5) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG.


323 Oaxaca - Rosario absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


324 Oaxaca - San Jose absent Confident Expert -
Metalworking was not widely used in Mesoamerica, with metal products consisting mainly of small beads and ornaments. [1] [2]

[1]: Coe, M. D., Koontz, R. (2013) Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs (7th ed.) Thames and Hudson, London, p157

[2]: Kowalewski, S. A., Feinman, G. M., Finten, L., Blanton, R. E., Nicholas, L. M. (1989) Monte Albán’s Hinterland, Part II: Prehispanic settlement patterns in Tlacolula, Etla, and Ocotlan, The Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, Volume II. Memoirs of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Number 23. Ann Arbor.


325 Kachi Plain - Aceramic Neolithic absent Confident Expert -
Only flint, bone and copper tools tools have been found at Mehrgarh [1]

[1]: Petrie, C. A. (in press) Chapter 11, Case Study: Mehrgarh. In, Barker, G and Goucher, C (eds.) Cambridge World History, Volume 2: A World with Agriculture, 12,000 BCE - 500 CE. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge


326 Kachi Plain - Ceramic Neolithic absent Confident Expert -
Only flint, bone and copper tools tools have been found at Mehrgarh [1]

[1]: Petrie, C. A. (in press) Chapter 11, Case Study: Mehrgarh. In, Barker, G and Goucher, C (eds.) Cambridge World History, Volume 2: A World with Agriculture, 12,000 BCE - 500 CE. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge


327 Indo-Greek Kingdom present Confident Expert -
The coins from the period show muscled cuirass. [1] Yuezhi (Kushan) find at Tillya-Tepe: "decorative gold clasp depicted a Greek infantryman in a cuirass breastplate carrying a spear and an oval shield." [2]

[1]: Sidky, H., The Greek Kingdom of Bactria, from Alexander to Eucratides the Great, Oxford, 2000, pp. 168-169

[2]: (McLaughlin 2016, 78) Raoul McLaughlin. 2016. The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes: The Ancient World Economy and the Empires of Parthia, Central Asia and Han China. Pen and Sword History. Barnsley.


328 Kachi Plain - Post-Urban Period absent Confident Expert -
No evidence for weapons or armor, apart from arrowheads, spearheads, daggers and axes, have been found at Pirak. This may in part be due to preservation conditions at the site. [1] However, Harappan weapons are "characterised by the absence of shields, helmets and armour". [2]

[1]: Jarrige, J-F. (1979) Fouilles de Pirak. Paris : Diffusion de Boccard.

[2]: Sharma, R. S., ‘Material Background of Vedic Warfare’, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 9 (1966):305.


329 Ottoman Empire I present Confident Expert -
Mail and plate korazin. [1] Siphai cavalry worse mail and plate armour. [2]

[1]: (Nicolle 1983, 6)

[2]: (Nicolle 1983, 35)


330 Ottoman Empire III present Confident Expert -
"Arab auxiliary, early 17th C." with mail-and-plate cuirass and coif" [1]

[1]: (Nicolle 1983, Plate F + 37)


331 Kachi Plain - Urban Period I absent Confident Expert -
No evidence for plate armor has been found from the Mature Harappan period. [1]

[1]: Cork, E. (2005) Peaceful Harappans? Reviewing the evidence for the absence of warfare in the Indus Civilisation of north-west India and Pakistan (c. 2500-1900 BC). Antiquity (79): 411-423.


332 Kachi Plain - Urban Period II absent Confident Expert -
No evidence for plate armor has been found from the Mature Harappan period. [1]

[1]: Cork, E. (2005) Peaceful Harappans? Reviewing the evidence for the absence of warfare in the Indus Civilisation of north-west India and Pakistan (c. 2500-1900 BC). Antiquity (79): 411-423.


333 Sakha - Early present Confident Expert -
This seems to fit the evidence most closely: "Young people up to a certain age looked after the herds, drove them from one place to another, caught, saddled, and loaded horses. They were called uollar, which means fellows. Among them the older and more skillful ones were called batyr -- knight, khosun -- warrior, and bargan (byargyan’) -- good shot, and roamed through the taiga not far from the settlements, hunting and fishing. Many of them had coats of mail (kuyakh) made from plates of iron and bone sewn over a leather caftan." [1] "Warriors used armor which consisted of small iron plates fastened to a leather coat and was called kuyax . The Chukchee and Koryak iron armor described by Bogoras and myself was undoubtedly adopted from Yakut sources, perhaps through Tungus intermediaries." [2]

[1]: Sieroszewski, Wacław. 1993. “Yakut: An Experiment In Ethnographic Research.”, 716

[2]: Jochelson, Waldemar. 1933. “Yakut.” Anthropological Papers, 171


334 Sakha - Late present Confident Expert -
This seems to fit the evidence most closely: "Young people up to a certain age looked after the herds, drove them from one place to another, caught, saddled, and loaded horses. They were called uollar, which means fellows. Among them the older and more skillful ones were called batyr -- knight, khosun -- warrior, and bargan (byargyan’) -- good shot, and roamed through the taiga not far from the settlements, hunting and fishing. Many of them had coats of mail (kuyakh) made from plates of iron and bone sewn over a leather caftan." [1] "Warriors used armor which consisted of small iron plates fastened to a leather coat and was called kuyax . The Chukchee and Koryak iron armor described by Bogoras and myself was undoubtedly adopted from Yakut sources, perhaps through Tungus intermediaries." [2]

[1]: Sieroszewski, Wacław. 1993. “Yakut: An Experiment In Ethnographic Research.”, 716

[2]: Jochelson, Waldemar. 1933. “Yakut.” Anthropological Papers, 171


335 Fatimid Caliphate absent Inferred Expert -
The Fatimid arsenals contained "the full range of medieval military technology such as mail, scale armor, horse armor, helmets, shields, pikes, lances, spears, javelins, swords, two-handed maces, slings, bows, and crossbows. [1]

[1]: (Hamblin 2005, 749) Shillington, K. ed. 2005. Encyclopedia of African History: A - G.. 1. Taylor & Francis.


336 Byzantine Empire I present Inferred Expert -
Preiser-Kapeller says present with a ?. [1]

[1]: (Johannes Preiser-Kapeller 2015) Institute for Medieval Research, Division of Byzantine Research, Austrian Academy of Sciences)


337 Byzantine Empire III present Confident Expert -
Preiser-Kapeller says present with a ?. [1]

[1]: (Preiser-Kapeller 2015) Institute for Medieval Research, Division of Byzantine Research, Austrian Academy of Sciences)


338 Late Cappadocia present Inferred Expert -
By 600 BCE early Greeks and Romans had introduced the bronze cast bell muscle cuirass. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 21) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


339 East Roman Empire absent Confident Expert -
absent in the sense of plate armor of the Late Medieval period. [1]

[1]: (Preiser-Kapeller 2015, Personal Communication)


340 Roman Empire - Dominate absent Confident Expert -
During the Principate there was lorica segmentata, as depicted on Trajan’s Column. "Strips of iron held together and articulated with leather straps and copper alloy fittings" [1] By this time lorica segmentata had disappeared. [2]

[1]: (Pollard and Berry 2012, 44)

[2]: (Pollard and Berry 2012, 221)


341 Rum Sultanate present Inferred Expert -
Even when the Seljuks adopted new military organisation mounted archers remained central to their forces. The ghulam slave soldiers “fought and were equipped in much the same manner as the ghulams and mamluks” elsewhere in Middle east. [1] At its best equipment was similar to that used in Iran "with perhaps some Byzantine or even Western European influence.” [1] General reference for this time period in Europe: cuirasses. [2]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.208

[2]: (Rogers 2007, 31) Clifford J Rogers. 2007. Soldiers’ Lives Through History: The Middle Ages. Greenwood Press. Westport.


342 Early Illinois Confederation absent Confident Expert -
"The Illinois made tools and utensils out of many different materials obtained from nature, including wood, bone, antler, shell, and stone." [1]

[1]: Illinois State Museum, The Illinois, Technology: Tools and Utensils (2000), http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/nat_amer/post/htmls/te_tools.html


343 Haudenosaunee Confederacy - Late absent Confident Expert -
Only references to Iroquois armour describe wooden armour, and it is clear that by this period they had stopped wearing armour altogether, because ineffective against firearms. "[T]he introduction of firearms and metal tipped weapons into native warfare forced the Iroquois to reconsider the way they approached combat. They discarded their wooden body armor and shields, which were only marginally effective against metal weapons and afforded no protection whatsoever against French guns. Moreover, continued use of wooden armor became impractical as Iroquois warriors learned to adapt their fighting style to the new weaponry. Shortly after the stunning debut of French firearms in the 1609 revolt of the Mohawks, Champlain recorded that the Iroquois had already learned to ’throw themselves on the ground when they hear the report’ of guns being fired. Wooden armor was too cumbersome for use in evolving Iroquois tactics, which also included hiding behind trees for protection until after the guns had fired. Armor and shields remained present in Iroquois society as teaching and protectice tools in the education of young warriors, but they no longer found a place in Iroquois wars." [1]

[1]: (Barr 2006, 28) Barr, Daniel P. 2006. Unconquered: The Iroquois League at War in Colonial America. Westport, Conn.: Praeger. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/collectionKey/943RGM7A/itemKey/KA4QX6HF


344 Chagatai Khanate present Confident Expert -
"In 1393 we hear of Persian soldiers dressed in mail (zirih baktah), with helmets and cuirasses of velvet-covered iron plates - a form of brigandine is suggested". [1] "In the late-fourteenth- and early-fifteenth-century miniatures, plate armour for the limbs makes its reappearance in the form of tubular vambraces, consisting of two hinged plates tapered towards the wrist, the lower one extended into a point to protect the elbow." [1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


345 Khanate of Bukhara present Inferred Expert -
Safavid and Mughal cavalry armour of the period included mail, cuirass (four breast-pieces, back and side plates), arm guards, circular shield, helmet. [1]

[1]: (Roy 2014, 47) Kaushik Roy. 2014. Military Transition in Early Modern Asia, 1400-1750: Cavalry, Guns, Government and Ships. Bloomsbury Academic. London.


346 Samanid Empire unknown Suspected Expert -
"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." [1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


347 Sogdiana - City-States Period unknown Suspected Expert -
"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards. The invader came under the influence of the remarkable Persian culture and no doubt, in due course, took advantage of the superior craftsmen now at his disposal for the making of his own equipment." [1] Breastplates present but no suit of plate armour.

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


348 Hephthalites unknown Suspected Expert -
-
349 Timurid Empire present Confident Expert -
"In 1393 we hear of Persian soldiers dressed in mail (zirih baktah), with helmets and cuirasses of velvet-covered iron plates - a form of brigandine is suggested". [1] "In the late-fourteenth- and early-fifteenth-century miniatures, plate armour for the limbs makes its reappearance in the form of tubular vambraces, consisting of two hinged plates tapered towards the wrist, the lower one extended into a point to protect the elbow." [1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


350 Jin Dynasty unknown Suspected Expert -
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351 Great Yuan unknown Suspected Expert -
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352 Ayyubid Sultanate unknown Suspected Expert -
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353 Chuuk - Early Truk absent Confident Expert -
-
354 Naqada I absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available.

355 Late Roman Republic absent Confident Expert -
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356 Elam II absent Inferred Expert -
No mention of plate armour until the Archaemenids who used iron breastplates. [1]

[1]: (Farrokh 2007, 76) Farrokh, K. 2007. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. Osprey Publishing.


357 Middle Bronze Age in Central Anatolia absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available
358 Konya Plain - Late Chalcolithic absent Confident Expert -
Technology not yet available