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When Armor gets Really Old! - Printable Version

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When Armor gets Really Old! - Alanus - 02-24-2017

"Warrior's 3,900 Year Old Suit of Bone Armour unearthed in Omsk."

So claims the title of a Siberian Times article by Kseniya Lugovskaya. It's refreshing to read an accurate piece written by a non-archaeologist. The armor, made from animal bone laced with rawhide, is most amazing because it was designed in the Early Bronze age, and believed to have been made by a craftsman of the Samus-Seyminskya culture of the northeastern Altai. Here are some photos:

   
   
   
   
   
   

Most interesting, this armor is sophisticated and also (I believe) lamellar. Possibly, this is the oldest example of armor found in Central Asia... or anywhere else. To access the original article, type the quoted headline (above in bold face) into your Google search engine. Enjoy. Big Grin


RE: When Armor gets Really Old! - brennivs - tony drake - 02-25-2017

Alan it is amazing the amount of ancient armour out there, I came across this when looking into the leather armour ect in the Roxolani thread. Most are from the east as you would expect, but some brillant pieces of kit even Tntankamuns leather lamellar armour is amazing, and some of the bone ones are also up there as well the reconstructions I have seen.
Regards Brennivs  Big Grin


RE: When Armor gets Really Old! - Alanus - 02-25-2017

Tony,

Agreed! We would never expect this kind of detail in something this old. It looks much like a forerunner of what we see worn by the Han Chinese, also very "Scythian" in design, and similar to the later Alan/Roxolani/Sarmatian examples. I suppose this Omsk armor is the granddad of "all the above." Rolleyes


RE: When Armor gets Really Old! - Tursius - 04-05-2017

Always love scale and lammellar designs in armor.


RE: When Armor gets Really Old! - Dan Howard - 07-29-2018

Depending on which report you read, this armour is anywhere from 3500 to 3900 years old. If it is 3900 years old it is the oldest armour we have. If it is only 3500 then it is not. Do we have a firmer dating on this find yet?


RE: When Armor gets Really Old! - Dan Howard - 07-29-2018

Quote:Always love scale and lammellar designs in armor.

It isn't scale or lamellar. It is a rod/slat construction that was usually made of bone or wood. This construction saw use on both sides of the Bering Strait for thousands of years. Here is a North American example made from wood.

[Image: d5df7aebde2aa42584f9e5e1b879e71d.jpg]