Armor
Shoumian Lianhuankai 獸面吞頭連環鎧
About this item
The Shoumian Lianhuankai is the armor Lü Bu wears in the Romance; its name means linked-ring armor shaped like a beast's face swallowing the head. In the Battle of Hulao Pass in Chapter 5 of the Romance, Lü Bu, as seen by Wang Kuang, Administrator of Henei, from beneath his banners, wore a purple-gold cap binding his hair in three prongs and a battle robe of red Xichuan brocade embroidered with a hundred flowers, had this armor on and rode the Red Hare. Romance, Ch. 5 §42–43
The Romance mentions this armor in only one place, in Chapter 5. Chen Shou's text records that Lü Bu was skilled at archery and horsemanship and surpassed others in strength, so that he was called the Flying General, and that he had a fine horse called Red Hare, but it does not record his armor. Romance, Ch. 5 §43Records, Wei 7 §4 · 7
In the Romance
In Chapter 5 of the Romance, when Cao Cao says that Dong Zhuo has stationed troops at Hulao Pass to cut the lords' central route, and that half their troops should go to meet him, Yuan Shao sends eight contingents of lords, including Wang Kuang, to Hulao Pass. Lü Bu comes galloping as if flying with 3,000 armored cavalry to meet Wang Kuang, who arrives first. Romance, Ch. 5 §42–43
The Romance here describes Lü Bu's attire from head to foot: a purple-gold cap binding his hair in three prongs, a battle robe of red Xichuan brocade embroidered with a hundred flowers, linked-ring armor shaped like a beast's face swallowing the head, and an exquisite lion-patterned belt cinching the armor; with bow and arrows about him and the Fangtian Huaji, his painted halberd, in hand, he rode the Red Hare that neighs into the wind, so that truly one could say, "Among men, Lü Bu; among horses, Red Hare." In fewer than five bouts Lü Bu spears Fang Yue, a famous general of Henei, from his horse with his halberd and crushes Wang Kuang's army. Romance, Ch. 5 §43–44
Written by 3KDEX (not yet reviewed) — The tags at the end of each paragraph link to the exact passage in the Records volume or Romance chapter it is based on.
Ownership history
| Owner | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Lü Bu | 190~ | Romance 「見呂布出陣…身披獸面吞頭連環鎧」 · 「初平元年」 |
Ownership is checked against the source texts (3KDEX) — each entry rests on the passage where the item changes hands. Owners not in the People index are not shown.