Blackmaille19

BLACKMAILLE
Part 19 - Internet Resources
by Lord Thomas the Black

BLACKMAILLE

INTERNET RESOURCES

Welcome back to Blackmaille! On with the show…

A lot of people have asked me where I get my information, and where I learned what I know about maille since I started in 1998. So, I've decided to document all of my sources in a two-part article. This first part will deal with all of the internet resources I use, while the second part will cover the books, magazines, and "Compleat Anachronist" issues I've used.

Disclaimer: Every site I list here, commercial and otherwise, is one I personally have used and would recommend to those researching any aspect of maille construction or history. I have not received any money to endorse these sites.

Butted Maille/ General Info

The Maille Artisans International League (M.A.I.L.)
www.mailleartisans.org

Probably the best all-purpose site available, with lots of patterns, how-to's, and articles about all aspect of mailling.

The Arador Armor Library
www.arador.com

A good site for instructions, patterns, and a bulletin board for those who need help.

The Armour Archive
www.armourarchive.org

Lots of good articles, patterns, and links, plus a bulleting board with some of the most knowledgeable armoursmiths available for help.

Bladeturner Armoury (formerly The Colluphid Armoury)
www.bladeturner.com

An outstanding site for easy-to-follow patterns, though their designs may not be the most historically accurate.

DeCordene' Wireworks
http://www.dcwireworks.com/

Lord Charles DeCordene' has a great site, selling everything a mailler could need in the way of tools and materials, plus a "how-to" page of instructions. In addition, the Chainmaille Board is a great resource for those seeking help or advice.

Paul Blackwell & Trevor Barker "Butted Mail: A Mailmaker's Guide"
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/trevor.barker/farisles/guilds/armour/mail.htm

One of the better guides to basic mail production.

Japanese Maille

John Groseclose "Japanese Chain Armor, as presented to the Atenveldt Collegium, A.S. 29"
http://www.iaincaradoc.org/~iain/gusari.html

Anthony J. Bryant "An Online Manual of Japanese Armour Construction"
www.sengokudaimyo.com

Riveted Maille/ History

Higgins Armory "A General History of Armor"
http://users.wpi.edu/~dev_alac/iqp/indepth/historyofarmor.html

Higgins Armory "Economic and Technological Evolution of Europe Relating to the Development of Plate Armor" http://users.wpi.edu/~dev_alac/iqp/indepth/sociopolit.html

Forth Armoury
www.forth-armoury.com/research

Stephen of Forth Castle has a lot of really interesting and informative articles on both the modern and historical production of riveted maille. Many maillers making riveted mail follow the steps in his article "The Secret in the Maille".

David Edge "The Construction and Metallurgy of Mail Armour in the Wallace Collection"
www.the-wallace-collection.org.uk/i_s/publications/mail_construction.htm

A very informative article offering some intriguing clues as to how maille was made in period.

The Mail Research Society

Erik D. Schmid had probably the most informative site on riveted mail I've ever seen. The Mail Research Society page had a large collection of PDF reproductions of out-of-print articles by such pioneers in mail research as E. Martin Burgess, Cyril Stanley Smith, and others. As for now, the site is undergoing some restructuring, and will hopefully have a new webpage up in the near future. Mr. Schmid is an extremely knowledgeable maille scholar, and always willing to help others. He's been a huge help in all of my research, and most questions posted to him receive an answer in a day or so.

And of course, let's not forget:

Thomas A. Beckett "Blackmaille" (monthly online column)
http://www2.kumc.edu/itc/staff/rknight/blackmaille.htm

Well, that about does it for online resources. This is by no means a comprehensive listing. There are many more sites out there, but these are what I would consider the "best of the best". As always, thanks for joining me for another month! Any maille-related questions or comments should be sent to me at:

                                      Blackmaille
                                      c/o Tom Beckett
                                      13628 Belmead Ave
                                      Grandview, MO 64030

Next month: A Mailler's Bibliography!

See you next month!

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