Editor's note: When it comes to chain mail in Europe or the Middle East, it should not be unfamiliar to military enthusiasts, but when it comes to Chinese locks A, I am afraid that many people will feel unfamiliar. So when did the chain mail appear in China, and is it really like some people believe that it is a super high-end armor that cannot be manufactured in China and can only be imported?
The earliest documentary record of chain armor in China is Cao Zhi’s "The Form of the First Emperor Gives the Minister’s Armor" during the Three Kingdoms period. One collar of the lock armor, one collar of the horse armor...". Although it is impossible to verify what the shape of the ring armor that Cao Zhi said here, it can be given to his son as a gift by Cao Cao. Whether it was made in China or imported at the time, it shows that the chain armor at that time must be a force. A taller armor.
So was there any chain mail in the Han Dynasty before this? At present, although it is possible to inflow through trade, there is no evidence that this kind of armor is even a small-scale equipment in the Han Dynasty. However, in addition to the origin of the rotten chain mail on the Internet, there is a very important question, that is, can the chain mail be self-produced in ancient China?
To explore whether a country has the ability to produce chain mail on its own, we must first determine a question, that is, whether the country has the ability to produce metal wire on a large scale. Of course, this is not to say that chain mail can be made with any kind of wire, but without the basic technology of making metal wire, it is impossible to develop the various metal rings needed to make chain mail.
China's metal wire manufacturing, except for the gold and silver wires that are easy to manufacture, the metal wire that can be used for daily use in China is copper wire manufactured during the Warring States period. However, this early copper wire was mainly used to decorate bronzes, so it is difficult to say what their quality is. Judging from the Han Dynasty bronze jade garments unearthed in modern times, at the latest in the Eastern Han Dynasty, China had manufactured fine copper wires of extremely high quality.
However, considering the ductility and plasticity of copper itself is stronger than iron, the ability to manufacture copper wire in the Han Dynasty does not mean that it can manufacture iron wire. In addition, as mentioned earlier, in the Three Kingdoms period, the chain mail was regarded as a high-end armor. In addition, in the "Book of Jin·Lu Guangzai", it is recorded that the former Qin army and the Qiuci army were fighting, and the armor of the other party was specially emphasized that "the armor is like a chain and cannot be shot." Therefore, it can be considered that at least until the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the chain mail should be rare and rare equipment in the Central Plains.
As for the appearance of iron wire, the earliest clear record of iron wire in China did not appear until the Song Dynasty. Although there is no documentary record of the way of making iron wire at that time, considering that iron wire was widely used in clothing, toys, and even cooking food modeling at that time, it can be concluded that the quality and quantity of iron wire in the Song Dynasty are very impressive. Based on this inference, China had the ability to manufacture chain mail as early as the Song Dynasty.
As you can make your own chain mail in Song Dynasty, there is another important example, that is the shape of the chain mail at that time. Different from the European and Middle Eastern chain mails that we are familiar with, which are made like clothes, the Chinese Song dynasty chain mails are made with the same parts as the zhajia, or simply use the chain mails. Mixed with Zhajia stitching.
Of course, considering the prosperous trade between the Song Dynasty itself and the Muslim countries in the Middle East, the generals of the Song Dynasty might actually buy chain mail from Arab or Persian merchants. But there is a question, why not use a complete chain mail, but spend a lot of time to disassemble and reassemble it? Moreover, since there are manufacturing conditions and trade communication, even if China does not point out the relevant technology on its own, it can still introduce production methods through trade. So to sum up, I personally think that the chain mail of the Song Dynasty should be more of the Song Dynasty.Chinese domestic products in the future, rather than imported products from other regions.
So before the Song Dynasty, did China have the ability to make iron wire or even chain mail? It can only be said that it is a pity, because there are no documents or unearthed cultural relics that can prove that China was capable of making iron wire before this, so it is even more difficult to say whether it can make iron chain mail. However, from some murals in the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, there were some hexagonal lock chain armors that were different from other regions. Therefore, the author believes that even if it is impossible to determine the type of Shanwen Jia, domestically produced The time of the appearance of the chain mail can still be pushed forward.
So in ancient China, was chain mail really a very expensive and rare armor? First of all, no one knows whether it is expensive, but it is scarce. Even if the unidentified Shanwen Jia is still excluded, the chain mail is not uncommon in the Tang and Song Dynasties. In addition to the chain mails that were made or mixed with the zha Jia in the Song Dynasty, in the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, the chain mail It is also suspected to be used as an inner armor.
at the same time as the proof of the Tang Dynasty chain mail application, there is also the Tang Dynasty satirical princess Li He led her own teacher to travel with great fanfare, which says Said "Xiqi brass chain armor, Luo Qixiang dried gold leaves." It is worth noting that "Xiqi" here does not refer to Xi's cavalry, but refers to the servant girl riding a horse. Although I don't know whether the chain mail they are wearing is really brass, or Li He's extravagant satire of the princess, it is obvious that this type of armor can be used by the princess to dress up her female followers at will.
At the same time, a more convincing one is the record of the chain mail in the military books. In addition to the high rate of appearance in the military books of the Song Dynasty, the ranking of the thirteen armours used in the Tang Dynasty in the "Six Codes of the Tang Dynasty": "There are three out of ten armours: bright armour, light armour, fine scale armour, black hammer armour , White cloth armor, soap silk armor, mountain armor, cloth back armor, infantry armor, leather armor, wood armor, chain armor, vest". Among them, the chain armor was ranked behind the leather armor and the wooden armor. Considering the writing habits of the ancients, it is obvious that people in the Tang Dynasty did not think this was a special armor.
Generally speaking, if the chain mail of the Tang and Song dynasties is compared with the more mainstream Zhajia, it must be regarded as a minority. But whether it is imported or self-produced, this kind of armor is not as rare as in the novel, so it will be regarded as a god-level armor. However, due to the fact that there are no unearthed cultural relics, the description of the chain mail in paintings, sculptures and documents is very vague. Therefore, how this type of armor is made, and is there any difference between the metal ring of the chain mail and the chain mail in other regions? , These are no evidence.
Accompanying the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty brought a large number of armor craftsmen from the Middle East and Central Asia, as well as the popularity of the Ming Dynasty long-air drawing machine in China, and the development of chain armor in China finally ushered in It was a prosperous period, but this period of chain methyl is already in line with the Middle Eastern style. Finally, as for the classic question, the chain mail and the zhajia, which one is better or worse. I just want to say that anyone who doesn't talk about workmanship, material, and armor unit weight, just compares the strength of Type A is a hooligan!
This article is the original manuscript of Cold Weapon Research Institute. The original profile of the editor-in-chief and the author of Silent Owl are not allowed to be reproduced without written authorization by any media or public account. Violators will be held liable.
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