Ōsode (大袖) of the Late Heian and Late Kamakura period
Ōsode (大袖) of the Late Heian and Late Kamakura period An example of a pair of ōsode from the Edo period. Despite their age they are made pretty much as the early models used centuries before. In this article I will cover one of the most ( if not the most ) iconic piece of Japanese armor usually associated with Samurai, the ōsode (大袖 ). As I did previously for my article on Japanese kote , the period of reference for this article is from the late Heian period to the late Kamakura , so from the 10th century to the early 14th one , although some of the features of this type of sode will eventually translate into other period as well, especially the Edo period. This choice is made to give some type of uniform classification when talking about armor but also due to the fact that around this long time frame, the Samurai who worn this type of armor piece were predominantly mounted archers and most of the armor and equipment of the period reflected thi...