Armor of Asia

Aside from Japan, most of Asia did not have a tradition of collecting and preserving armor. It seems that armor, like arms, were regarded as tools which were discarded or recycled when determined to be not useful after some time. A comparable present day analogy is one's mom or wife, looking at your collection in a threatening way, while doing spring cleaning to rejuvenate the home.

Below are examples of armor from Asia.

This photograph was taken in China. Pay special attention to the details of the vambrace, also known as the forearm guard.

This photograph was taken by the city of Liangchow or Liang-chou, now known as 兰州 Lanzhou in 甘肃 Gansu Province, China.

The headdress of this statue dates it as pre-Qing dynasty, before the year 1644.

A surcoat of decorated silk, worn over armor, is frequently depicted in warrior representations of China.

Further away from China across the globe, the type of silk surcoat above was the envy of European aristocracy. Charles d'Artois was a Knight of the Knights of Our Lady of the Noble House. His surcoat had been described as being of vermilion camocas. Camocas was an extremely expensive silk import in Europe. Not privileged enough to wear such silk, Charles d'Artois' high ranking chamberlains wore coats of white cloth instead. An image of a surcoat worn in Europe is to the right.

The Emperor of China and members of his court wore silk with even greater sophistication of weave.

Reference for interpretation of the medieval name Liangchow:
Lesdain, Count De. From Pekin to Sikkim. London: John Murray, 1908. Page 133.
Reference for the clothing of Charles d'Artois:
Newton, Stella Mary. Fashion in the Age of the Black Prince: A Study of the Years 1340-1365. Boydell Press, 1980. Page 48.