Mirror armor, which will be discussed below, was used by many peoples from the 10th to the 17th century. In Persian culture, this type of warrior defense was called chahar-aina, which literally translates as 'four mirrors'. The Chinese called him pinyin - 'a mirror that protects the heart.' This indicates some external properties and structural features of this armor.
Mirrors can be called two different types of armor: full mirror armor and personal mirrors. The latter were mounted on top of the ring armor. The technique of fastening the plates was different: rings and straps. The borrowing from the East of the style of making armor is traced. According to surviving sources, researchers are convinced that full graznal armor appeared in the Ottoman Empire. But borrowing personal mirrors leads to Central Asia and Iran.
Full grain protection
This is an independent type of armor. It consists of a large round chest plate and the same back, in addition, from many different flat parts. Each mirror had its own name. So the large chest plate was called the "circle" (regardless of shape), the rest - "planks", "necklaces", "hoop". The number of flat parts could vary from ten to twenty. Often the mirrored armor, the photo of which is presented, had a hem from chain mail. This type of ammunition is stored in Stockholm, in the Royal Treasury.
In Russian knights, mirrors also had a mystical component, playing the role of a talisman from enemy arrows or claws of the beast. Before the battle they were even deliberately polished to a shine. The point was to influence the psyche of opponents.
Mirrors personal
This is not an independent armor. They served as reinforcement for hull armor. They were worn over chain mail protection or shell. In Russia, they appeared by trade routes from Iran, where they were called "four eyes." This speaks of their four components: the chest, two side and back plates. Rectangular in shape were the lateral and dorsal flat parts, and the lapels were more often made round.
The ancient Mongols used this type of protection in the 13-14 centuries. Round-shaped mirrors were fastened with straps on top of chain mail. They got their distribution in the 15-17 centuries. They were worn not only as an enhancement of the reflectivity of chain mail. They were also worn on lamellar armor, as well as on top of a kuyak, ankylosing spondylitis.
Persian Improvement
Small round mirrors are somewhat limited in their ability to protect their wearer, so in the 16th century rectangular components began to be made on the territory of Persia - this is the main feature of the 17th century Persian armor. They covered a larger area on the body of a warrior than round ones, which means that the probability of injury from tangential hits with a blade or arrow was significantly reduced. Such armor was adopted by the countries of Central Asia and the northern part of India. Based on the enlarged main parts of the defense, in the 17th century, Persian grazed armor appeared, which consisted of four rectangles encircling a torso like cuirasses.
In Central Asia
Small disk-shaped mirrors were very popular in Central Asia until the 17th century. They were mounted on the chest, and behind - on the shoulder blades. Leather straps stretched through the plates, tied to the shell, pulling the plate itself and armor. They were often found during excavations of the mounds of Mongol warriors of the 13-14 centuries.
Even with the spread of laminar armor, mirrors were worn over them.
Moscow option
Personal mirrors with octagonal-shaped plates, chest and back ones became very widespread in Russia. In the capital of the Russian Federation, the meeting of the Armory Chamber protects fifty-six exhibits of personal mirrors, one third of which have octagonal plates connected by belts. Twenty of them have a ring connection. The collector Sheremetyev saved twenty-four copies of personal mirrors with rectangular plates.
In the period after the Time of Troubles, protection from metal plates more became an element of decoration for uniforms. Indeed, already in the second half of the 17th century, the development of firearms negated the ability of armor to protect a warrior from injury. A bullet pierced him with the same ease with which an arrow pierced a caftan. One of the pride of the Armory is the full version, which includes a helmet, mirrors, as well as bracers and leggings. It was worn in the 17th century.
Armor of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich
17th century mirrored armor of Moscow princes was often covered with gold, decorated with engraving and coinage. Its plates rarely exceeded two kilogram weight. For example, the armor of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, who received the title of “Quiet”, had a round plate on his chest, with gilded rectangular parts of a smaller size, gilded components on the belt, gilt bracelets and greaves. All of this is worn over a chain mail shirt. Crowned by a helmet defense. What is very interesting, this battle headdress of the Russian autocrat had Arabic inscriptions - quotes from the Koran. An inscription gaping along the nasal arrow says about a single true god - Allah. And the bottom of the helmet is decorated with 256 verses of the second sura. What it is connected to the end is not clear.
The ruler is known as the second representative of the Romanov clan on the Russian throne. He became king at the age of sixteen. It is known that he was a very religious person, observed fasts, and performed church rites of the Orthodox direction.
He was fond of various cryptography systems, Egyptian hieroglyphs, knowledge of ancient peoples. Perhaps here lies the secret of the Arabic text. Although everything can be much simpler, the inscriptions are an accident.