An interesting find from last year is reported at http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~ekp/news/20111012-KongsanArmor.html (http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~ekp/news/20111012-KongsanArmor.html).
It is lacquered leather lamellae apparently of the type called "shining armour", dated to 645 AD by a Chinese inscription.
cheers,
Duncan
And the first ever found, it seems, plus it is in amazingly good condition.
Patrick
I suppose leather, in waterlogged soil, with no oxygen, will probably outlast steel
Jim
The lacquer has blackened with time though. Reconstructions give a sort of dark bronze colour, very pretty for troops.
Tom..
I did wonder if that was the original shade. Are any of the colour reconstructions online?
I cant think of any on line, but this one re a Chu tomb has some:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305440311001890
Interesting, thanks.
Incidentally, I noticed that the Paekche "shining armour" is mentioned in Schafer's Golden Peaches of Samarkand, where he implies it is brightly-polished iron armour. I suppose that's the most natural interpretation until the stuff actually turns up, made of leather!