Early Gambeson

It was always possible to drive the point of a weapon through the rings of a mail shirt or shear it with a good cut. This often drove the damaged rings deep into the wound. Even if the blow didn't cut the mail, the blunt trauma alone was enough to break bone and damage internal organs. A thick, padded garment worn under a mail shirt greatly reduced the risk of these types of injuries. Our gambeson is of a type worn from the early middle ages well on through the Renaissance.