Jingasa
Jingasa By: Ian Bottomley Jingasa are items that I have always never really understood. Over the years I have owned a few, and still have some, but I never really found out much about them. What did the different shapes signify? Why were they worn and when? When were they first used ? These are all questions I have never really obtained answers to. Recently I was loaned copies of the ‘Daruma’ magazine in which there are a series of articles on jingasa by Akemi Masaharu that gives some more detail ( issues No 27, 36, 42, 47 and 57). Using that information, as well as my own thoughts on the subject has led me to write these few words on the subject. It is generally acknowledged that jingasa originated as a form of helmet made for lower ranking troops during the Sengoku Jidai. Exactly when they were first made is debatable. Early foot soldiers, ashigaru, were only poorly equipped by their commanders, relying on battlefield loot as their source of equipment ...
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