• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.61 no.3
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• pp.20-35
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• 2011

The purpose of this study is to investigate war helmets that were worn by high navy officers during the period of Japanese Invasion of Korea(1592~1598). War helmets worn during the War are classified into three types depending on whether they have a visor or 'cheom' and tongues or 'drim'. The war helmets of circumferential type has neither cheom nor drim. Those of cheom type has cheom, but not drim. And those of drim type has both drim and cheom or jeonbi. The war helmets of cheom type consist of a gamtu which is made of steel and looks like a reversed bowl and cheom that surrounds the entire circumference of gamtu. The war helmets of drim type are reclassified into two types in accordance with the shape of the gamtu and whether they have ganju. Of the two types, one type looks like a reversed bowl and has decorations on the top without ganju. The other type looks like a bottle neck and has ganju on the top, decorations above ganju. War helmets were in transition during the period of Japanese Invasion of Korea. Both the war helmets of cheom and drim types were worn during the War. At that time, the officers also wore war helmets having no ganju and looking like a reversed bowl and those having ganju and looking like a bottle neck. During the period, most war helmets were made of steel, but in the 18th and 19th centuries, most of them were made of leather.