Linothorax design/construction

[PMBardunias]

Perhaps it was a chiton-like leather jerkin instead. ...except that there is no depiction or description of such a thing....

Perhaps there is and we simply fail to recognize it as such. One feature of the early Tube and yoke (T-Y) that seems fairly consistant is that the shoulder pieces attach to the breast via a thong on the tapering inner edge of the shoulder piece. The point of attachment is usually the center or at least towards the center of the tube and often quite low- sometimes on the belly. I have been pondering this somewhat odd system and why it should be so.

It is possible that the placement of the thong on the inner edge of the flap and a central attachment place the load bearing on the inside of the flap such that when the arm is raised the whole stiff shoulder-flap hinges on its inside edge, taking pressure off the part of the shoulder that goes up when you raise your arm.

If true, of itself this is an interesting design feature for a man who fights with an upraised arm, but there may be more to it. If we look at some later T-Y examples, often the attachment is higher and more lateral, with smaller shoulder pieces.

Sheer speculation, and it would require a systematic examination of images to be sure, but I put forth the thought that not all T-Y corselets are created equal. Perhaps the latter did slip over the head, the shoulder pieces being fixed or a decorative holdover- like the roman mail reinforcements I mentioned earlier. In these examples the shoulder pieces are added over a vest -like mail and there is no reason that they had to look like greek shoulder pieces- the Gallic cape-style would have worked just as well.