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Book Recommendations and Links
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The links on this page are directly to the Amazon.com online store, with the same low prices and service you would get from linking directly to Amazon.com. However, when you purchase through this link page a portion of the proceeds will go towards supporting the research that has made the Silk Road Designs Armoury Historical Overview Site possible.
This page is only begining and more specific recomendations will soon be provided. You can also search Amazon.com directly from this page or simply use the general link to jump to Amazon.com. By using either of these options you will also be helping this site. You will find these options below the specific recomendations.
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Oriental Armour by H. Russel Robinson (written in the 60ies) - Mr. Robinson was curator at the Royal Armouries and an expert on Eastern and Roman armour. This book is still the foundation piece for anyone researching Eastern Armour. The book is out of print. It is unfortunate, but Amazon.com does not yet offer to look for it on your behalf. If you can get it some other way -- Do so!
The Armour of Imperial Rome by H. Russel Robinson (from the early 70ies) - The author is described above. This book contains a thorough overview of the available information on Roman helmets. It also contains the first responsible reconstructions of both well known types of the "Lorica Segmentata" (reconstructions of which only one has been mildly challenged since that time). If you have pretentions to enthusiasm for Roman armour, beg, borrow, or otherwise obtain this book if you can at all do it. The book is out of print but listed by Amazon -- this means that they will try to get it for you. They have a second listing for it here.
What the soldiers wore on Hadrian's Wall by H. Russell Robinson - Haven't read this one, but if it's Robinson, it's got to be good! This one's out of print as well.
Arms and Armor of the Medieval Knight by Edge and Paddock - The first recommendation after the Robinson classics because it is the first reference book for anyone interested in armour, whether armourer, collector, or medieval combat enthusiast. Mr. Edge is curator at the Wallace collection.
The Armourer and His Craft : From the XIth to the XVth Century by C. J. Ffoulkes - While the book was written early in this century, it nevertheless still stands as a must for any armourer's library. Mr. Ffoulkes was curator at the Royal Armouries, and while I deplore his position that "Oriental Armour" did not belong there, I must acknowledge his pionering genius in the historical study of armour. .
"Armourers" from the Medieval Craftsmen Series by Matthias Pfaffenbichler - I have been told that this book is what you want to update the Ffoulkes book to the present day. I have not read it. Last I checked this link, the book was out of print, but Amazon will look for you.
Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times : Together With Some Closely Related Subjects by George Cameron Stone - A big title for a big book. In a dictionary format, Mr. Stone came pretty close to fulfilling the promise of the title. An excelent collection of photographs and information on both Eastern and Western Armour. This book was done early in the century and must be viewed within those limitations. Mr. Stone's personal armour collection is what became the collection of the Metropolitan Museum in New York. The link promises a new paperback edition in the year 2000. This may not be the best way to go. I have been told that the quality of photographs has gotten steadily worse with each edition -- but maybe in 2000, they will have "digitially remastered" from the original. .
Arms and Armor of the Samurai by Turnbull, Bottomley, and Hopson - Same format as "Arms and Armor of the Medieval Knight" (above) and just as usefull. A must for anyone talking about Japanese armour. Mr. Bottomley is curator at the Royal Armouries.
Greece and Rome at War by Peter Connolly - Another must. Armour, combat, and tactics of the Greek and Roman world. Detailed, accurate reconstructions by an artist and historian. Mr. Connolly followed in the footsteps by H. R. Robinson and developed on his findings (he is mentioned in Robinson's earlier work as a friend and coleague). .
Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350 : Western Europe and the Crusader States by David Nicolle - First of two volumes. Mr. Nicolle is probably the most prolific armour historian out there today, and the most available to laymen. With that prolific accessibility (see the "Osprey books" table below), however, he seems to be somewhat free in making assumptions that are not necessarily fully supported by the evidence.
Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia by David Nicolle - Second of two volumes. See above for my caveat regarding the author.
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The Osprey Military Books -- They have their limitations but no armour enthusiast's library is complete without them. However, please remember -- the artist is often less interested in accuracy then in drama, so read those artist's representations with a grain of salt... Similarly, because of the popular rather than scholarly nature of the source, the authors often feel free to make more assumptions about the evidence than is necessarily waranted. In fact, you will notice that all of the books on this list are by one author - David Nicolle. If you go to the Search form below the book recommendations, and use his name as the search parameter, you will find at least twice as many books -- I have listed here only those books by him that are relevant to the main subject of this Web Site. As I mentioned above, possibly because of the volume and expanse of his knowledge and erudition, Mr. Nicolle sometimes makes assumptions not necessarily waranted by the evidence. Keep in mind that these books are brief overviews not end-all authorities. |
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Attila and the Nomad Hordes : Warfare on the Eurasian Steppes 4Th-12th Centuries (Elite Series, No. 30)
by David Nicolle - The various Central Asian nomadic groups who entered the Eurasian steppes during the centuries listed, including the Huns, Avars, Khazars, Magyars, Pechenegs...
Romano-Byzantine Armies 4th - 9th Century (Men-At-Arms, No. 247) by David Nicolle Armies of Medieval Russia, 750-1250 by David Nicolle Lake Peipus 1242 : Battle of the Ice (Osprey Military Campaign Series, 46) by David Nicolle - The Battle, and the events surrounding it, that made Alexander, Knyaz of Novgorod into Saint Alexander Nevsky. Hungary and the Fall of Eastern Europe, 1000-1568 (Men-At-Arms Series, 195) by David Nicolle Rome's Enemies : The Desert Frontier (Men-At-Arms, No. 243) by David Nicolle Armies of the Muslim Conquest (Men-At-Arms, No 255) by David Nicolle Armies of Islam : Seventh to Eleventh Centuries (Men at Arms, 125) by David Nicolle Armies of the Caliphates 862-1098 (Men-At-Arms Series, No 320) by David Nicolle Saracen Faris 1100-1250 Ad (Warrior, No 10) by David Nicolle - A good discussion of what made for a "Knight" of Islam (including a 12th century Middle Eastern Omelete recipe). Illustrations include clothing (down to socks and underware), banners, horse gear and armour. However, there is at least one glaring mistake in the illustration of armour (just to illustrate the care one needs to take in relying on these books) -- there is a detail of how leather thongs are laced into a Maile collar -- the thongs in the illustration are laced perpendicular to the way they are actually laced on every historical Maile collar I have seen. Saladin and the Saracens Armies of the Middle East 1100-1300 (Men-At-Arms Series, No 171) by David Nicolle Hattin 1187 : Saladin's Greatest Victory (Campaign, No. 19) by David Nicolle The Age of Tamerlane : Warfare in the Middle East C.1350-1500 (Men-At-Arms, No. 222) by David Nicolle Armies of the Ottoman Turks, 1300-1744 (Men at Arms, 140) by David Nicolle The Mamluks 1250-1517 (Men-At-Arms, No 259) by David Nicolle The Janissaries (Elite, No 58) by David Nicolle Mughul India 1504-1761 (Men-At-Arms, No 263) by David Nicolle |
Two Stories from the Shahname -- the main national Epic of Persia / Iran:
The Tragedy of Sohrab and Rostam : From the Persian National Epic, the Shahname of Abdol-Qasem Ferdowsi by Abolqasem Ferdowsi (Translator), Abdul Perdowsi - Father and Son fighting to the Death - this dramatic story finds parallels throughout the world, David and Ansalem, Cuchulain and his Son, Ilya Murometz and his children... and in the terrible reality of Ivan IV and his son, Peter I and his son...
In the Dragon's Claws: The Story of Rostam and Esfandiyar from the Persian Book of Kings by Jerome Clinton (Translator) - Esfandiyar is Persian for Alexander. For whatever reason, Alexander the Macedonian (Alexander the Great) has become the legendary hero of many nations. This story is the story of Alexander the Macedonian according to the Shah Nameh (the Persian national Epic).
The Jew in the Medieval World a Sourcebook : 315-1791by Jacob Rader Marcus - Another selection of primary source materials. This one far more extensive, dealing with the whole variety of topics relevant for the medieval Jew - including day to day life, internal religious developments, anti-semitism... One of the earliest documents is a letter from a fourth century anti-semitic passenger describing his voyage on a boat with a Jewish captain. This book is not for the faint of heart, the book was written in 1937 and the introduction by the author is hard to read without a shudder where it references the "last throws of Medievalism" represented by the "up and coming" NAZI regime. It also includes a first person account of an Inquisition torture of a "New Christian" woman accused of Judaising. Another edition is here.
Some books I have not read which sound interesting --
Barcelona and Beyond: The Disputation of 1263 and Its Aftermath by Robert Chazan - In the Middle Ages, the leaders of the Jewish community were often forced by the Catholic authorities to dispute religion with Churchmen. This book addresses the most famous of thse disputes - that between Nahmanides and Pablo Christiani. I have read the dispute as described by Nahmanides. I have not read this book -- the author claims to present descriptions of the dispute from both sides and to arrive at an understanding of what really happened.
Under Crescent and Cross: The Jews in the Middle Ages by Mark R. Cohen
Church, State, and Jew in the Middle Ages Edited by Robert Chazan
European Jewry and the First Crusade by Robert Chazan
In the Year 1096 : The First Crusade and the Jews by Robert Chazan
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight translated by JRR Tolkien - This work stands outside of the Malory cycle most of us are used to (Malory may have retold it and made it fit, but this is the original). It is a wonderful tale in itself and interesting in tying the courtly romance of Arthur with the early Celtic myths (it is a retelling of the Irish Beheading-Game story). Before becoming creator of "Lord of the Rings" Tolkien was a professor of Medieval Literature (or was it Mythology?). The original and the translator are both wonderful, the translation is therefore likely to be quite special (I have only discovered it and intend to purchase for myself).
The New First Three Years of Life by Burton L. White
And if one is doing Medieval reenactment, wo can leave out these Jems of authenticity -- The Diskworld series!
(this is just the latest to come to the US):
The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett
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Articles and Illustrations by Norman J. Finkelshteyn.
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