Red-Lacquered Armour with Dark Blue Lacing (朱漆塗紺糸威縫延腰取二枚胴具足) - Designated Cultural Property of Hikone City - Edo period
This suit of armour is traditionally said to have belonged to Ii Naozumi (井伊直澄, 1625–1676), the third lord of the Hikone Domain. Its most distinctive feature is the white hair ornament attached to the top of the helmet. Known as a Kara no Kashira (唐の頭, "Tang-style crest"), it is made from bundles of yak hair.
Among the armour worn by successive heads of the Ii family, this helmet is the only surviving example that preserves the original method of attaching the Kara no Kashira. The bundled hair was inserted into a fitting mounted on the front of the helmet, allowing the crest to rise prominently above the wearer's head.
