Armour presented to King James I by Tokugawa Hidetada. Possibly originally for Takeda Katsuyori and modified by Iwai Yozaemon for presentation in about 1610.
The helmet (suji kabuto) is composed of twelve plates lacquered black and embossed to simulate twenty two plates, all separated by gilt copper ribs. The front plate has three ribs, while the rear plate has two and a loop (kasajirushi no kan) holding a red agemaki. It is fitted with a neck guard (shikoro) of three iron plates cut and lacquered to simulate lamellae. It is laced with red silk above and purple below. The lower plates are laced with two rows of red cross-laces and one of woodpecker braid throughout the armour. The upper plate of the shikoro is extended into modern turn-backs (fukigayeshi) lacquered black and decorated with modern gilt kanemono. At the peak is a modern fitting retaining gilt copper kuwagata. The half mask (mempo) has a fixed nose piece and a small throat guard of four iron plates laced with purple silk. The teeth are gilt, and there is small, brown, modern moustache and beard.
The cuirass is composed of iron lamellae laced horizontally with leather, lacquered black, then laced vertically with red and purple silk braid, The upper breast, back and side plates are of solid iron lacquered black with gold badges (ken-hanabishi). The do is fitted with six kusazuri formed of lacquered leather plates and laced in purple silk. It is decorated with the karabana mon, the petals separated with ken blades, in gold lacquer, of the Takeda family.
The shoulder defences (o-sode) are each made of seven rows of laced lamellae, the upper three of iron, the lower four of leather. The upper plates (kamuri ita) are lacquered black and decorated with flowers in gold lacquer, with a binding of blue leather stencilled with seven-leaved grass in white. The shin defences (suneate) are each made of three plates lacquered black and connected by hinges. The upper plates are laced to each other and to the lower plates with purple silk.
The armour box was made in 1972 by Hiromichi Miura, who undertook the complete conservation and relacing of the armour. All the missing elements of the surviving parts of the armour were replaced, including all the gilt kanemono; the kanemono which are now of plain copper are original.
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