#ClariOnHEMA getting theoretical again, this time on armour.

—Is leather armour historical?—

CW // none apply //

Short answer: Yes, but not the way you might think.

1/16

There have absolutely been armour in which leather was used as material, but the RPG leather armour is mostly fictitious.

Leather armour is not flexible and supple. That's just leather clothing and protects about as well as an overcoat.

2/16

Leather that has been treated (boiled or baked, we don't really know the exact process) is hard and resembles ceramic plates or hard plastic more than the flexible leather we use in clothing.

But hard plate sounds good for an armour, right?

Well, yes and no.

3/16

Hardness is definitely a merit, but leather as a material poses some serious limitations.

1) You can't really repair leather armour

Cloth can be sown, metal can be welded and reforged, but apart from some very dubious glueing, there isn't much you can do for leather.

4/16

You'd have to replace entire sections of the armour in their entirety, so field repairs are out of the question. Not a great feature for any professional soldier at least.

This doesn't preclude ceremonial use, but that takes it out of the realm of real armour altogether.

5/16