The dō (胴) is the typical torso armor of Japanese armor. It is composed of a combination of leather, lacquered metal, and fabric (usually silk) in varying quantities. It can be divided into two fundamental types:
- Classic armor, developed during the medieval period in Japan, consisting of kozane plates: lightweight armor for foot soldiers (dō-maru and haramaki-dō) and heavy armor, ō-yoroi, for mounted warriors.
- Modern armor, developed by Japanese armorers after contact with Europeans, particularly the Portuguese, consisting of variously assembled iron plates (ita-mono).
History
The Japanese began producing armor based on Chinese and Korean models in the 1st century. In the 4th century, additional elements, such as helmets, were added to the armor, giving it a distinctive Japanese stylistic characteristic.
The armor from this "primitive" phase (also known as "pre-samurai"), consisting of simple iron pieces connected by leather strips, included the tankō (plate armor) worn by foot soldiers and the keikō of mounted warriors.
During the Heian period (794-1185), the design of the chest armor (dō) composed of small metal or leather lamellae (hon-kozane) or larger metal plates (hon-iyozane) connected with rivets, laces, or chainmail, covered with lacquer for weather resistance, was codified.
In the 16th century (the "Nanban trade period"), trade between the Japanese and Westerners, especially the Portuguese, brought European armors and morion helmets, which were integrated into the panoply of wealthy samurai to counter the spread of firearms, introduced by the Portuguese in 1543 and immediately adopted by daimyō for their armies under the name tanegashima-teppō ("fire stick of Tanegashima").
These new "hybrid" armors were called tameshi-gusoku, meaning "armor tested against bullets." Concurrently, the continuous conflicts among daimyō during the Sengoku period led to increased demand for weapons and armor, resulting in the production of lower-quality armors, primarily to equip the ashigaru militia.
This context also gave rise to a new type of armor, the tatami gusoku, with its central component being the tatami dō.
Types
- Dō-maru: Lightweight armor with side lacing.
- Haramaki-dō: Lightweight armor with back lacing.
- Ō-yoroi: Heavy armor with side lacing through a separate piece (waidate). Lightweight armors were primarily used by less wealthy samurai or more powerful warriors who preferred less bulky armor for infantry combat. The ō-yoroi armor was used by wealthy mounted warriors.
Construction
In the Japanese armor tradition, the type of armor is defined by the fundamental dō, which determines the name of the armor. For example, an armor with a hotoke dō will be called hotoke dō gusoku, while an armor with a karuta tatami dō will be called karuta tatami dō gusoku.
- Kozane Dō: The "classic" samurai armor, used before the introduction of firearms, was of the lamellar type, and kozane refers to the individual lamellae.
- Kiritsuke Kozane Dō: A type of laminar armor, meaning "imitation lamellar armor."
- Tosei Dō: Modern armor composed of metal plates (ita-mono), which became prevalent after the spread of Western firearms.