Samurai Suneate

Samurai Suneate is a leg protection and a part of the traditional Japanese armour (O-Yoroi). The Suneate are similar to European greaves in its purpose but different in their design. The samurai Suneate usually were made as a set with the Kote (armoured sleeves), matching designs, patterns, and fabric used.

Early samurai Suneate were mostly three leg-fitting plates. After the 16th century, two new types had emerged: Tsubo (tubular) Suneate and Shino (splinted) suneate. The Shino Suneate or Splint Suneate was the most common type of the samurai Suneate. There were a number of styles for this type differing in width and length of the splints used, spaces and spans between them, designs of knee-guards and their presence. The Shino was of the similar design as of the Kote (armoured sleeves) and attached to the underlying fabric in the same way by being stitched with mail used to span the spaces between Shino. The Tsubo Suneate was much tighter and made of slightly overlapping metal plates. The central plate often had a ventral ridge and was overlapping the side plates. The plates were connected either by small hinges or more often with a series of cross-laces.

One important part of the samurai Suneate was the Tateage or knee-guards. Early Suneate did not have any kind of a knee protection and only starting from the 16th century they started to appear. There were several designs of the Tateage – from very low ones, just covering a kneecap, to very high ones, covering half of a thigh. The latter ones were used mostly for horse riding. The Tateage could have been made of Kikko (a special Japanese fabric used in armour crafting), Kikko covered by mail, or metal plates. The plates were usually used for the Tsubo Suneate, but the Kikko ones could be used for any style of the samurai Suneate.

At these days, samurai Suneate is a subject of interest for collectors, historians, and re-enactors of the Samurai life. Looking online, you can find both authentic Suneate and reproductions. The authentic ones will cost you more and some reproductions can be of a very high quality, reflecting all details that a real samurai Suneate would have.

You can see current listings for Samurai Suneate below: