Mempo
Mempō ( Japanese 面 頬 ) was part of the warrior armor ( Yoroi ) in ancient Japan .
description
It was a leather or iron half mask that was worn to the kabuto . It covered the wearer's entire face below the eyes and had lamellas ( yodare kake ) that also protected the neck from attack. The mask was often painted in color and artistically designed to resemble a face, often a distorted grimace, sometimes women or animals. Many Mempō were even provided with "beards" made of glued-on hair.
Versions
Mengu (face armor) are available in various versions. They can be constructed in such a way that they protect the face from the nose to the chin, as above (photo), only protect the chin or the entire face, but also so that they only protect the forehead and the cheek area.
- Mempo . It protects the face including the chin, mouth and nose. Eyes and forehead remain free.
- Happuri . Only the cheeks and forehead are protected. Nose, mouth and chin remain free.
- Hōate . Chin and cheeks are protected. Mouth, nose and forehead remain free.
- Hanpo . The chin is completely protected, the cheeks partially. Nose, mouth and forehead remain free.
- Somen . The entire face is protected.
Individual evidence
Various mengu (face armor)
Hanpo
Happuri
Somen
Mempo
The parts of the Mengu
Yodare-kake (throat protector)
Ase nagashi no ana (drainage hole for sweat)
Ori-kugi (fastening hook for the Shinobi-no-o (chin strap) of a Kabuto (helmet))
Odome (straight fastening pin, also for the Shinobi-no-o (chin strap) of a Kabuto (helmet))
literature
- George Cameron Stone : A Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. With an Introduction by Donald J. LaRocca. Courier Dover Publications, Mineola NY 1999, ISBN 0-486-40726-8 , p. 445.
- Arts of Asia. Vol. 31, No. 1-3, ISSN 0004-4083 , 2001.