This Japanese armor was probably never worn in battle. Too bad—it was frightening and frighteningly well-built. The suit includes a helmet, face-mask, shoulder guards, cuirass (breast plate and back plate), forearm sleeves, thigh guards, shin guards, and bear-fur boots. Specialized craftsmen laced together hundreds of lacquered metal and leather plates with red and indigo silk cords to give the suit its distinctive appearance and flexibility. It was tailor-made, likely for a high-ranking official from the Kii Tokugawa family and possibly Tokugawa Yorinobu himself (1602–71), the founder of that family branch.
The helmet bowl consists of 124 plates, an unusually high number, designed in an upside-down acorn shape. A praying mantis, gilded with gold, is poised as if to strike its prey. The helmet is signed by Saotome Iechika, a famous armorer during the late 1500s and early 1600s.
The Tokugawa clan’s triple hollyhock crest (Tokugawa aoi), similar to a three-leaf clover, appears on the hand-guards and the gyōyō, the leaf-shaped plates that protect the fastening cords of the cuirass. The crest indicates that the armor belonged to a Tokugawa family member.
The guards are unusually large, made of curved scales that are lacquered and laced together (honkozane).
Phoenixes are good omens. Descending from heaven at the dawn of a new age, they arrive with radiant feathers and singing an enchanting song. They perform good deeds then return to their heavenly home until the next new age. A symbol of justice, obedience, and loyalty, the phoenix also represents both peace (when it appears) and disharmony (when it disappears).
Japanese dragons aren’t always the bad guy. Usually depicted as large, wingless, snake-like creatures with clawed feet, they’re fearsome but fair, and bring wealth and good fortune.
Chinese Lions (karashishi) frolicking among bloming peonies is a frequent motif in Japanese art. The lion is a protector guardian in Buddhism and king of beasts while the peony is the king of flowers.
This is a special type of tortoise known as minogame for the seaweed that is growing on its back as a symbol of its long life.