252 Chinese Clay Figures 



Different from chain mail, though allied to it, is the ring mail. 

 The Wu pei chi, as far as I know, is the only source to inform us of the 

 existence of this type of armor in China (Fig. 41). The cut of this book 

 is here reproduced, not only because it is unique in the representation of 

 this specimen, but also because it is very instructive in showing us again 

 how difficult it is to draw inferences from oriental illustrations as to the 

 real type of armor intended by the artist. Any expert in armor, casting 

 a glance at this sketch furnished by the Ming edition of the Wu pei chi, 

 could voice no other opinion than that it is meant to represent a type of 

 scale armor. But the author, as plainly stated in the heading, means 

 to represent a ring armor made of steel wire ; and the description added 

 by him leaves no doubt of this intention. He states that "armor of 

 connected rings wrought from steel wire was formerly made by the Si 

 K'iang, and that the structure of the rings is identical with the large 

 iron wire rings of his time, with openings as big as in a coin; in shape, it is 

 like a sort of shirt, and it is held together above by a collar ; it is not open 

 in front, but put on over the head; spears and arrows can hardly ever 

 pierce it and cause wounds." Unfortunately he omits to state what the 

 foundation is to which the rings are fastened; but from the drawing, in 

 which the rings are arranged in overlapping rows, it is necessary to con- 

 clude that they were attached to a solid garment, in the same manner as 

 our ring mail, which consisted of steel rings sewed edgewise upon leather 

 or strong quilted cloth. 



The name K'iang (No. 1 264) mentioned in this text, as is well known, 

 is a general designation for the multitude of ancient Tibetan tribes, at a 

 time when they were still settled in the western parts of Chinese ter- 

 ritory. A. Wylie 1 has translated from the Annals of the Later Han 

 Dynasty the records pertaining to them. They were exterminated by 

 the Han dynasty. 2 The Chinese tradition tracing ring mail to Tibetan 

 tribes is significant, though it is not necessary to adopt the opinion that 

 the latter ever really made it. Yet the fact remains that ring mail still 

 occurs among the Tibetans. There is even a Chinese source of the 

 middle of the eighteenth century alluding to it. In the Si-tsang ki 

 ("Records of Tibet"), a small but interesting work on Tibet in two 

 volumes, published in 1751 by Chu K'i-tang (Ch. 1, p. 23), three kinds 

 of armor in use among the Tibetan soldiers are enumerated, — the scale 

 armor (liu ye, "willow-leaves"), the ring armor (lien huan, "connected 



1 History of the Western Kiang (Revue de I' Extreme-Orient, Vol. I, 1883, pp. 424- 

 478). 



2 Chavannes, Les M6moires historiques de Se-ma Ts'ien, Vol. Ill, pp. 591, 595; 

 and Trois g£ne>aux chinois (T'oung Pao, 1906, pp. 256-258). 



