• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.65 no.3
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• pp.76-90
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• 2015

This is a basic study of the two remaining armors (artifacts number K2366, K2368) from the late Joseon dynasty that is part of the Korean costume collection, which is preserved in the Mission Museum of Saint Ottilien in Germany. The armor No. 1 (artifacts number K2366) is a coat-styled armor with brass studs. It has a U-shaped neckline with the non-overlapping collars and sleeve straight-lined inseam. The armor No. 1 has the Mu to the sides and is not back slit. Both its inner and outer material are padded with cotton. Leather mails are attached on the inner lining, and studs are attached on the outer lining to match the leather mails. For this reason, the armor No. 1 can be named MyeonPiGab (brass studded armor consisting of a cotton coat with internal leather mails). The outer material is faded to have the natural white, or antique white look and the patterns on it are indigo blue. The inner material is blue, but the original color is unknown since it is faded. The lotus blossoms and vine patterns are dyed on the surface of the outer material and a name is written on the inner material. The armor No. 1 was worn between the late 17th century and the 19th century. It is estimated that it was worn by military officers who were above the mid-rank in the end of the Joseon dynasty. The armor No. 2 (artifacts number K2368) is a coat-styled armor with brass studs and a low-cut U-shaped neckline. The armor No. 2 has a slit on the left armpit and a string around it. Studs are evenly attached on the armor. The iron mails are attached to the left chest area on its inner lining. It seems that it was designed with both formality and functionality in mind. The outer material is red flannel, the inner material is blue satin and the pads are cheesecloth. The side of its collars, cuffs, front lines, sidelines, back slit, and bottom lines are trimmed with fur. There are armors called "JeonCheolGap (brass studded armor consisting of a felt coat with internal iron mails)," which is similar to the armor No. 2, however, the similarities are limited because they are not made of the same material nor do they follow the same principle of nomenclature.