The Production Site and Development of Daegeum style armors from the Korean Peninsula

In the Three Kingdoms period, Gaya, Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla produced and developed a variety of iron armor. After the 5th century, the so-called Daegeum-style armors, which is a set of Daegeum-style armor and Horn helmet or Awning helmet, appeared in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula. This armor was also excavated in the Japanese archipelago, which is an important archaeological material to examine the relationship between the two regions at the time. With the recent increase in the number of excavation and reporting cases of Daegeum-style armor, research on its nature and relations between Korea and Japan at the time has become active. However, opinions on the production site are divided into the Korean Peninsula and the Japanese archipelago, which is a prerequisite for understanding the nature and background of the Daegeum style plate armor. The manufacturing site of Daegeum style plate armor can be identified by comparing the characteristics of the Early Daegeum-style plate armor with the Vertical plate armor on the Korean Peninsula and the Square plate armor on the Japanese archipelago. The assembly process, structure, and manufacturing technique of the Early Daegeum-style plate armor, the Rectangular plate armor, are similar to those of the Square plate armor. This shows that Daegeum style plate armor is a new type of armor created on the same technological genealogy as Square plate armor, and it serves as the main basis for grasping the production site as the Japanese archipelago. The development of Daegeum style plate armor can be divided into Gaya and Silla regions and Baekje regions. Daegeum style plate armor found in the Gaya and Silla regions in the mid-5th century was mainly found in small-sized tombs, and Daegeum style armors are not buried in batces. From the end of the 5th century, it is also found in large-sized tombs, and is mainly buried with Local-traditional armors such as Scale Armors and Vertical plate Helmets. It is believed that Daegeum-style plate armors in this area was obtained as a ritual for the deceased's goods or stores through exchanges with the Japanese archipelago. On the other hand, Daegeum-style armors were found in Baekje in the mid-5th century, which shows burial facilities and burial practices of Japanese pirates centering on the southwest coast. In the latter half of the 5th century, relics related to Baekje's central region and Gaya were gradually identified in the same pattern as in the previous period. This change is understood as a process in which the Japanese who came to the region to exchange with the Mahan region in the mid-5th century gradually became localized in connection with the central region of Baekje. Daegeum style plate armors excavated in this region are thought to be practical items used by the deceased during their lifetime.