''Haramaki'' is a type of chest armour (''dou or dō'') worn by the

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

class of feudal Japan and their retainers.

Description

''Haramaki'' were originally constructed with the same materials as the

ō-yoroi The is a prominent example of early Japanese armor worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan. The term ''ō-yoroi'' means "great armor."(Mondadori, 1979, p. 507). History ''Ō-yoroi'' first started to appear in the 10th century during the mid ...

but designed for foot soldiers to use as opposed to the ō-yoroi which was for mounted warfare.Samurai, warfare and the state in early medieval Japan
(Google eBook),

Karl Friday Karl F. Friday (born 1957) is an American Japanologist. Friday earned a bachelor's degree in Japanese at the University of Kansas in 1979, followed by a master's degree in East Asian languages and culture from the same institution in 1983. He th ...

, Psychology Press, 2004 P.94 ''Haramaki'' refers to any

Japanese armour Scholars agree that Japanese armour first appeared in the 4th century, with the discovery of the cuirass and basic helmets in graves. During the ''Heian period'' (794-1185), the unique Japanese samurai armour '' ō-yoroi'' and ''dō-maru'' appe ...

which is put on from the front and then fastened in the back with cords. Other types of dō open from the side (''ni-mai dō'', ''dō-maru'', ''maru-dō'') instead of opening from the back as the ''haramaki does. Modern '' haramaki'' are thick cloth undergarments worn around the belly to increase body heat retention during the winter.

References

External links

Traditional Haramaki photographs

Anthony Bryant's web site about construction and history of Japanese armor
{{Japanese (samurai) weapons, armour and equipment Samurai armour

Description

See also

References

External links