Why are There So Few Surviving Maille Examples
When studying history, one must be careful not confuse an instance for an exemplar. In other words, just because something is seen once, does not mean that it was the norm. On the other hand, one must also be careful to not confuse a pattern with uniformity. These considerations are, of necessity, conflicting considerations and bearing both in mind requires a balancing between taking a view that something was the norm just because it shows up a few times, and the opposite -- that something is “wrong” just because there is no known example.
This relates to maille, and the problem of how few surviving maille examples there are, because it is hard to keep this balance when the sample size of surviving maille is small or skewed to a particular period or place. In the case of maille, there are literally only a handful of surviving examples of maille from the period of 1000-1300 – which is incidentally the height of maille’s popularity and prevalence. Most maille shirts that do survive were made after 1300. This dearth of surviving examples makes it difficult to generalize about styling, whether to flatten the overlap or whole ring, whether a round or wedge rivet is appropriate, and so forth. Again, even though we might be aware of a pattern, this does not even mean that was the norm. Nor does the norm exclude outliers.
This article will not solve these questions. However, this article will seek to explain why we have so few surviving examples of maille from the medieval period despite it being the most prevalent form of armor from this time.
First, and most significantly, maille is made of thousands of feet of iron wire. Exposure to air and moisture is going to cause rust. Overtime, all iron and steel will oxidize. Rust is not just something that will weaken the metal; it will actually replace metal entirely.
One maille shirt found in a First or Second century funeral pyre was found with rings and observable rivets still intact. However, no metal survived. [1] All that remains is iron oxide, which makes study, examination, and handling of the shirt difficult. This shirt survived in a rusted out state for so long because it was placed in a funeral pyre and buried. It was in a relatively low oxygen site and was left undisturbed. Being undisturbed is critical because a shirt that may have been found in a state of disrepair 500 years ago might not have been treated with care to preserve it, instead, the shirt might have been sold, melted down, or thrown out (or turned into a pot scrubber like the shirt found in the Birka Garrison.) [2] This is especially true if a maille shirt is older and has not been well maintained.
By using what we know of historical records, we can re-create a possible lifespan for a shirt of maille. By doing this, we can truly appreciate that for maille to survive at all; it must survive any number of trials before finding safe harbor.
First, let us assume that a merchant buys a shirt of maille. We know that it was common in the 13th and 14th century for the merchant class to own armor because of various Assizes mandating that men of a particular status, such as freemen of the city, have a minimum level of armor for the defense of the city and the realm. For example, Henry II’s Assize of Arms in 1181 mandated all those who possessed land worth ₤110 to furnish themselves with a horse and full knightly equipment, those with ₤20-40 were to be equipped with a hauberk, iron cap, lance, and sword. [3] By 1285, the Assize of Winchester mandated those with land of ₤15 and an income of 40 marks a year to have a full hauberk, helm, sword, knife, and horse. Those with land of ₤10 and incomes of 10 marks a year were to have a short-sleeved mail shirt, a helmet, sword, and knife. A 100-shilling freeholder was to have a padded coat, iron cap, sword, and a knife. [4]
As you can see, overtime, the Assizes required that men of lower and lower status be equipped with more armor and equipment for the protection of the realm. So then, it makes sense that a merchant would have to own armor to comply with the Assizes. Now, let us consider what kind of use this armor would get. Maybe it would be used a few times a year at local militia maneuvers – possibly the armor would be used to fend off some local brigands and might even see a real battle. But in all likelihood, someone who works in the merchant class would not have a daily need for the armor. Instead, this merchant has thousands of feet of exposed wire sitting in his closet or attic collecting dust and getting rusty.
Now suppose that after owning this armor for 30 years, the merchant dies. That armor, with the rest of his estate, will likely pass to his son. In fact, it was very common for wills to be specific in giving armor to a son. A will in 1345 written by a mercer left his son Thomas, a mazer, his “coat of mail, a Pysan, and an eventayl.” [5] This will, and many like it, make it abundantly clear that second hand, or even third-hand armor was common. Let us now assume that this armor, too, is used only minimally, but at least is well maintained and oiled. Let us assume that after another 20 years, the son dies and he still owns the same coat of mail. From period wills, we also know that it was common to direct that certain property be sold off to fulfill other requirements of the will or to provide money for funeral costs and prayers for the deceased. One such will bequeathed John de Hardyngham’s personal effects to friends, family, and the church. He further directed that his armor "be sold for the fulfillment of this his testament.” [6]
Let us next assume that our shirt of maille is sold to fulfill a testament. It is now 50 years old and is purchased by an armor merchant who cleans the shirt up, makes some needed repairs, and sells it for a modest profit. This time, however, the purchaser uses the armor only one time – in a battle where he is cut down and killed. Now the armor has a gaping hole in the torso and slashes on an arm.
It was very common for the dead to be stripped of their weapons and armor after battle. In fact, the Bayeux tapestry depicts various fallen soldiers being stripped of armor or already stripped of their armor in the final scenes of the tapestry. [7] Therefore, let us assume that some enterprising participant in the battle comes across this armor and decides to strip the poor fallen soldier of these damaged goods. He takes the damaged armor for repairs and keeps it for himself.
Fortunately for the new owner, a soldier who is part of a free company (read soldier of fortune), he gets years of use out of the armor. Over the years, he of course makes necessary repairs, but the armor is starting to show its wear and is no longer in good condition. We have records recording the price of scrap metal and indicating that melting a down metal would result in a loss of some metal, but that a smith could turn a modest profit.
This relates to maille, and the problem of how few surviving maille examples there are, because it is hard to keep this balance when the sample size of surviving maille is small or skewed to a particular period or place. In the case of maille, there are literally only a handful of surviving examples of maille from the period of 1000-1300 – which is incidentally the height of maille’s popularity and prevalence. Most maille shirts that do survive were made after 1300. This dearth of surviving examples makes it difficult to generalize about styling, whether to flatten the overlap or whole ring, whether a round or wedge rivet is appropriate, and so forth. Again, even though we might be aware of a pattern, this does not even mean that was the norm. Nor does the norm exclude outliers.
This article will not solve these questions. However, this article will seek to explain why we have so few surviving examples of maille from the medieval period despite it being the most prevalent form of armor from this time.
First, and most significantly, maille is made of thousands of feet of iron wire. Exposure to air and moisture is going to cause rust. Overtime, all iron and steel will oxidize. Rust is not just something that will weaken the metal; it will actually replace metal entirely.
One maille shirt found in a First or Second century funeral pyre was found with rings and observable rivets still intact. However, no metal survived. [1] All that remains is iron oxide, which makes study, examination, and handling of the shirt difficult. This shirt survived in a rusted out state for so long because it was placed in a funeral pyre and buried. It was in a relatively low oxygen site and was left undisturbed. Being undisturbed is critical because a shirt that may have been found in a state of disrepair 500 years ago might not have been treated with care to preserve it, instead, the shirt might have been sold, melted down, or thrown out (or turned into a pot scrubber like the shirt found in the Birka Garrison.) [2] This is especially true if a maille shirt is older and has not been well maintained.
By using what we know of historical records, we can re-create a possible lifespan for a shirt of maille. By doing this, we can truly appreciate that for maille to survive at all; it must survive any number of trials before finding safe harbor.
First, let us assume that a merchant buys a shirt of maille. We know that it was common in the 13th and 14th century for the merchant class to own armor because of various Assizes mandating that men of a particular status, such as freemen of the city, have a minimum level of armor for the defense of the city and the realm. For example, Henry II’s Assize of Arms in 1181 mandated all those who possessed land worth ₤110 to furnish themselves with a horse and full knightly equipment, those with ₤20-40 were to be equipped with a hauberk, iron cap, lance, and sword. [3] By 1285, the Assize of Winchester mandated those with land of ₤15 and an income of 40 marks a year to have a full hauberk, helm, sword, knife, and horse. Those with land of ₤10 and incomes of 10 marks a year were to have a short-sleeved mail shirt, a helmet, sword, and knife. A 100-shilling freeholder was to have a padded coat, iron cap, sword, and a knife. [4]
As you can see, overtime, the Assizes required that men of lower and lower status be equipped with more armor and equipment for the protection of the realm. So then, it makes sense that a merchant would have to own armor to comply with the Assizes. Now, let us consider what kind of use this armor would get. Maybe it would be used a few times a year at local militia maneuvers – possibly the armor would be used to fend off some local brigands and might even see a real battle. But in all likelihood, someone who works in the merchant class would not have a daily need for the armor. Instead, this merchant has thousands of feet of exposed wire sitting in his closet or attic collecting dust and getting rusty.
Now suppose that after owning this armor for 30 years, the merchant dies. That armor, with the rest of his estate, will likely pass to his son. In fact, it was very common for wills to be specific in giving armor to a son. A will in 1345 written by a mercer left his son Thomas, a mazer, his “coat of mail, a Pysan, and an eventayl.” [5] This will, and many like it, make it abundantly clear that second hand, or even third-hand armor was common. Let us now assume that this armor, too, is used only minimally, but at least is well maintained and oiled. Let us assume that after another 20 years, the son dies and he still owns the same coat of mail. From period wills, we also know that it was common to direct that certain property be sold off to fulfill other requirements of the will or to provide money for funeral costs and prayers for the deceased. One such will bequeathed John de Hardyngham’s personal effects to friends, family, and the church. He further directed that his armor "be sold for the fulfillment of this his testament.” [6]
Let us next assume that our shirt of maille is sold to fulfill a testament. It is now 50 years old and is purchased by an armor merchant who cleans the shirt up, makes some needed repairs, and sells it for a modest profit. This time, however, the purchaser uses the armor only one time – in a battle where he is cut down and killed. Now the armor has a gaping hole in the torso and slashes on an arm.
It was very common for the dead to be stripped of their weapons and armor after battle. In fact, the Bayeux tapestry depicts various fallen soldiers being stripped of armor or already stripped of their armor in the final scenes of the tapestry. [7] Therefore, let us assume that some enterprising participant in the battle comes across this armor and decides to strip the poor fallen soldier of these damaged goods. He takes the damaged armor for repairs and keeps it for himself.
Fortunately for the new owner, a soldier who is part of a free company (read soldier of fortune), he gets years of use out of the armor. Over the years, he of course makes necessary repairs, but the armor is starting to show its wear and is no longer in good condition. We have records recording the price of scrap metal and indicating that melting a down metal would result in a loss of some metal, but that a smith could turn a modest profit.
13 July 1345 On Wednesday after the Feast of the Translation of St Thomas the Martyr [7 July] Ao 19 Edw. III [1345], it was found by the oath of Henry Lorchon, William Bygelyn, Peter le Smyth of the Old Exchange, Hugh le Smyth of Bassieshagh, Walter le Helder of Cornhill, William de Bayonne and William de Louthe, smiths, that the cwt. of scrap iron (ferri hirsuti) (fn. 26) was then worth 3s, and the remaking (reparacio) of a cwt. of the same was worth 4s, and that a quarter of the cwt. was lost in the working. (L) [8]
Therefore, the owner decides to sell the armor for scrap and to purchase some second hand armor that is in better condition.
Our portrait is not meant to describe an actual lifespan of a shirt, but does describe a possible lifespan. Moreover, each event described is based on known historical records, which indicate that such events not only were likely, but also did in fact occur. Therefore, by describing a fictional maille shirt’s lifespan, we truly can get a sense of why we tend to see so few surviving maille pieces. Now consider that maille was at its height of popularity between 1000-1300. Maille was the pinnacle of armor for this period and was used almost universally. That means that this theoretical lifespan must, in part, describe the lifespan of many other pieces of armor across Europe in the Medieval period.
A final reason of why so few shirts survive – especially between 1000-1300, is that maille was once the most popular form of body armor available. When it was popular, it was also ubiquitous, therefore, if a shirt was in poor condition, it was not worth saving and was likely scrapped or tossed out. This is no different from today when we don’t appreciate a vehicle unless it has withstood the test of time and proven to be a “classic.” When a vehicle is in production, it is not valued in the same way as after production stops when only a finite number of the vehicle now remain. People move from a view that there will always be more, to a view that those that remain must be preserved and maintained. This same phenomenon explains why we see so few pieces of maille survive from a period known as the Age of Maille. Maille was a ubiquitous armor, when it was worn out, it was likely scrapped or otherwise discarded.
This theory also would explain those examples that do tend to survive. The examples that we do tend to find tend to be ones used in ritual burial sites, repurposed for other uses, or stuck away in odd places like inside a church wall. Other examples of armor that tend to survive are mass graves, where stripping the fallen of their armor was too time consuming or otherwise impractical. This is seen in armor found in burials sites after the battle of Wisby. Finally, surviving maille from after 1400 tends to survive because by this time, maille is not the ubiquitous armor any longer. Therefore, a shirt that was tucked away in an attic or otherwise kept from wear and rust would be seen as an antique or oddity and therefore preserved rather than be scrapped.
All of these factors and more play into whether a particular piece of maille will survive hundreds of years until it is such an antique and novelty that people will no longer be willing to melt it down or throw it out. Therefore, each of these reasons – as well as all of them combined – help explain why we have so few surviving maille examples today.
[1] B.J. Gilmore, “The Mail Shirt,” Folly Lane (Verulamium),
[2] Fredrik Ehlton, “Maille from the Birka Garrison,” Forensic Archeology Laboratory, (Stockholm, 2003): 2
[3] John France, Western Warfare in the Age of the Crusades: 1000-1300, (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1999):. 32.
[4] Ibid.
[5] R. R. Sharpe (Ed.), 'Wills: 19 Edward III (1345-6)', Calendar of wills proved and enrolled in the Court of Husting, London: Part 1: 1258-1358 (1889). URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=66881&strquery=mail Date accessed: 19 October, pp. 475-484.
[6] R. R. Sharpe (ed.), 'Wills: 27 Edward III (1353-4)', Calendar of wills proved and enrolled in the Court of Husting, London: Part 1: 1258-1358 (1889). URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=66890&strquery=armour Date accessed: 19 October 2013, pp. 667-675.
[7] Britain’s Bayeux Tapestry, “The Battle of Hastings: Scene 6,” http://www.bayeuxtapestry.org.uk/bayeux31.htm (Accessed 7/2/14).
[8] From: 'Roll A 5: (ii) 1341-45', Calendar of the plea and memoranda rolls of the city of London: volume 1: 1323-1364 (1926), pp. 198-223 http://www.fioredeiliberi.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1616 (accessed 7/2/14).
Our portrait is not meant to describe an actual lifespan of a shirt, but does describe a possible lifespan. Moreover, each event described is based on known historical records, which indicate that such events not only were likely, but also did in fact occur. Therefore, by describing a fictional maille shirt’s lifespan, we truly can get a sense of why we tend to see so few surviving maille pieces. Now consider that maille was at its height of popularity between 1000-1300. Maille was the pinnacle of armor for this period and was used almost universally. That means that this theoretical lifespan must, in part, describe the lifespan of many other pieces of armor across Europe in the Medieval period.
A final reason of why so few shirts survive – especially between 1000-1300, is that maille was once the most popular form of body armor available. When it was popular, it was also ubiquitous, therefore, if a shirt was in poor condition, it was not worth saving and was likely scrapped or tossed out. This is no different from today when we don’t appreciate a vehicle unless it has withstood the test of time and proven to be a “classic.” When a vehicle is in production, it is not valued in the same way as after production stops when only a finite number of the vehicle now remain. People move from a view that there will always be more, to a view that those that remain must be preserved and maintained. This same phenomenon explains why we see so few pieces of maille survive from a period known as the Age of Maille. Maille was a ubiquitous armor, when it was worn out, it was likely scrapped or otherwise discarded.
This theory also would explain those examples that do tend to survive. The examples that we do tend to find tend to be ones used in ritual burial sites, repurposed for other uses, or stuck away in odd places like inside a church wall. Other examples of armor that tend to survive are mass graves, where stripping the fallen of their armor was too time consuming or otherwise impractical. This is seen in armor found in burials sites after the battle of Wisby. Finally, surviving maille from after 1400 tends to survive because by this time, maille is not the ubiquitous armor any longer. Therefore, a shirt that was tucked away in an attic or otherwise kept from wear and rust would be seen as an antique or oddity and therefore preserved rather than be scrapped.
All of these factors and more play into whether a particular piece of maille will survive hundreds of years until it is such an antique and novelty that people will no longer be willing to melt it down or throw it out. Therefore, each of these reasons – as well as all of them combined – help explain why we have so few surviving maille examples today.
[1] B.J. Gilmore, “The Mail Shirt,” Folly Lane (Verulamium),
[2] Fredrik Ehlton, “Maille from the Birka Garrison,” Forensic Archeology Laboratory, (Stockholm, 2003): 2
[3] John France, Western Warfare in the Age of the Crusades: 1000-1300, (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1999):. 32.
[4] Ibid.
[5] R. R. Sharpe (Ed.), 'Wills: 19 Edward III (1345-6)', Calendar of wills proved and enrolled in the Court of Husting, London: Part 1: 1258-1358 (1889). URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=66881&strquery=mail Date accessed: 19 October, pp. 475-484.
[6] R. R. Sharpe (ed.), 'Wills: 27 Edward III (1353-4)', Calendar of wills proved and enrolled in the Court of Husting, London: Part 1: 1258-1358 (1889). URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=66890&strquery=armour Date accessed: 19 October 2013, pp. 667-675.
[7] Britain’s Bayeux Tapestry, “The Battle of Hastings: Scene 6,” http://www.bayeuxtapestry.org.uk/bayeux31.htm (Accessed 7/2/14).
[8] From: 'Roll A 5: (ii) 1341-45', Calendar of the plea and memoranda rolls of the city of London: volume 1: 1323-1364 (1926), pp. 198-223 http://www.fioredeiliberi.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1616 (accessed 7/2/14).