Re: [FT] (LONG) The Balance of Power -- Fighters and a Defense

From: "Jaime Tiampo" <fugu@spikyfishthing.com>
> Shawn M Mininger wrote:
> >
> > Just one tiny comment.  If I remember correctly, most
> > of the eastern armor of this period was actually made
> > of multiple layers of lamenated paper.
>
> Incorrect. Metal and leather still domminated infantry. Dress armour
was
> silk. Japanese I'm not so sure of but I believe it was a composite of
> lackered bamboo and silk.

Japanese armour was also mostly metal.

Some Chinese armour was indeed made of lacquered/glued layers of paper.
It
was cheaper, and in the tropical south, lighter and somewhat more
comfortable than metal or leather. But overall, it remained a rare
curiosity. See: Joseph Needham, 'Science and Civilisation in China', the
volume on paper.

Cheers
Karl Heinz