Ō-yoroi

As far back as the seventh century Japanese warriors wore a form of lamellar armor, which evolved into the armor worn by the samurai. The first types of Japanese armor identified as samurai armor were known as ō-yoroi and dō-maru. These early samurai armors were made from small individual scales known as kozane. The kozane were made from either iron or leather and were bound together into small strips, and the strips were coated with lacquer to protect the kozane from water. A series of strips of kozane were then laced together with silk or leather lace and formed into a complete chest armor (dou or dō). A complete set of the yoroi weighed 66 lbs.