Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Jim McDougall · 16th February 2008, 04:17 AM

Interesting! But.....how about animals that BECAME armour?

In Benin, members of the Leopard Hunters Guild wore helmets and armour made from the skin of the scaly anteater or pangolin (Spring. p.50).

In China the earliest armour used was of hide, and the layers used seem to have depended on whether one or two horn rhinos (Robinson p.126)
Rhinoceros was used a great deal of course on shields in India, Africa and so on, but was also favored for armour. In some cases in China, even sharkskin was used for armour.
In North America, the American Indian tribes often used moose or caribou hides stitched together in layers.

16th February 2008, 04:17 AM	#4
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,200	Interesting! But.....how about animals that BECAME armour? In Benin, members of the Leopard Hunters Guild wore helmets and armour made from the skin of the scaly anteater or pangolin (Spring. p.50). In China the earliest armour used was of hide, and the layers used seem to have depended on whether one or two horn rhinos (Robinson p.126) Rhinoceros was used a great deal of course on shields in India, Africa and so on, but was also favored for armour. In some cases in China, even sharkskin was used for armour. In North America, the American Indian tribes often used moose or caribou hides stitched together in layers.