"Han Chinese armour" Topic
8 Posts
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blankfrank | 18 Feb 2011 10:26 a.m. PST |
I'm about to start painting up my Han Chinese (Curteys miniatures nice). The Opsrey books show their armour as a leather brown, however I can't help thinking it should be a lacquered black as seen on some tomb figures, I'm thinking of the mini terra-cotta army here. What are other peoples thoughts? Thanks |
Jovian1 | 18 Feb 2011 11:33 a.m. PST |
The re-creations also show leather brown armor – and I would agree that it would be the leather brown color for MOST units. Some special units (royal guard types) would have the blackened laquer armor like the tomb soldiers. In my studies of the Han period, most armor for the common soldier was leather armor, no need to laquer it unless it was for a special unit/reason. Then again, it rots so who knows for certain? |
Skeptic | 18 Feb 2011 6:39 p.m. PST |
I don't know if there is any evidence for this, but it may also have been dyed. |
Mapleleaf | 18 Feb 2011 10:10 p.m. PST |
I think Skeptic is correct and that painted armor is a definite possibility. In Chinese art general officers and Divine figures are shown in highly decorated and painted armour. A lot of that armour would have been leather including some items as the breast and back plates and greaves. There is one constant factor in all Chinese history and that is people. there would have been enough people around to paint and maintain armor. Look at the time and effort it took to build the terra cotta army. A powerful emperor could also have devoted such effort to a living army. Besides the point of Wargamimg is fun so go with the natural army but also include some painted examples as well It would be logical for elite units and would look great. Here is a website that I found. Admittedly a lot of the illustrations are questionable but they certainly look great Also if you Google Image Chinese armor or Han armor you will find a lot more. link Enjoy your armies ML |
teenage visigoth | 19 Feb 2011 4:31 p.m. PST |
In doing my Warring States project, I've adopted the idea of lacquered armour. It's pretty much a constant in chinese armoury as other posters have commented. It also allows you to 'colour code' your armies and units. This pretty sweet and useful in period that has a narrow range of gear and uniforms. |
Skeptic | 19 Feb 2011 5:30 p.m. PST |
And judging from the most commonly-depicted ancient Chinese lacquered objects, albeit wooden ones, black and red would be likely colours to start with. |
Come In Nighthawk | 29 May 2013 4:05 p.m. PST |
How did the Han preserve their leather armor from rotting due to soldiers' sweat, or exposure to the elements on campaign -- and what animals were used as the source of the leather? Good soldiers over the millennia could/would keep their leather accouterments in good shape, and the leather would last longer, if it was kept oiled. Was Chinese armor oiled? It would seem that lacquering would be another good way to preserve the leather for longer than one campaign? I mean, otherwise, how many Asian cows/buffalo and pigs would you have to kill each year to keep the Han army in leather armor? And, accepting the CW that the Han mostly used leather armor. Do we know why they didn't use metal armor? The Romans were all OVER metal armor -- and the craze of the 1960s-1990s, "Romans used leather armor or wore no armor in the Late Empire," seems to have been pretty well discredited by modern scholarship. Since the Roman Empire and the Han Empire apparently were about the same "size" (roughly 50-odd million people), and about equally wealthy at their height
What explains the Romans "affording" metal armor for their army but the Han not? |
Crazyivanov | 18 Nov 2014 7:59 a.m. PST |
Reasons that the Chinese probably mostly used Leather armor in the Han dynasty period. 1) They did not have chain mail. 2) They weren't an expansionist power. The Chinese Army was a force to suppress rebellions and keep the odd Xiongnu horde out. Giving the average peasant expensive protective armor might jut fill their head with crazy ideas. 3) Crossbow. The Chinese usage of crossbows may have convinced military bureaucrats that more extensive armoring just wasn't worth the price. |
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