XIII Century Research Articles

ЭВОЛЮЦИЯ ПОНЯТИЯ «ТИШИНА» В РУССКОЙ ДУХОВНО-ПОЛИТИЧЕСКОЙ ТРАДИЦИИ XI – НАЧАЛА XIII В.

Статья посвящена одной из базовых категорий русской духовно-политической мысли – “тишина”. “Тишина” определялась как некоторое духовное состояние, так и социально-политический идеал, которым должны руководствоваться правители в своей деятельности. Однако на протяжении долгого времени значения этого понятия изменялись, в зависимости от контекста на первый план выходили отдельные его смысловые аспекты. В связи с этим важно проследить смысловое содержание понятия “тишина”, зарождение этого понятия в русской мысли и его развитие на раннем этапе. Для этого был проведен контент-анализ сохранившихся русских текстов домонгольского периода, выделена специфика словоупотребления, предложена авторская схема содержания и развития понятия. Выяснено, что на данном этапе тишина означала состояние мира, невмешательства извне во внутренние дела Руси, время созидательного труда и мирного бытия под защитой Бога, что приобрело особую важность после установления ордынского ига. The article is devotedto one of the basic categories of Russian spiritualand political thought - silence. Silence defined both a certain spiritual state anda socio-political ideal that rulers should be guidedby in their activities. However, over time, the meanings of this concept have changed, depending on the context, someof its semantic aspectshave come to the fore. Inthis regard, it is importantto trace the semantic contentof silence, the origin of this concept in Russian thought and its development at an early stage. For thispurpose, a content analysis of the preserved Russian texts of the pre-Mongol period was carriedout, the specifics of word usage were highlighted, and the author's scheme of the content and development of the concept was proposed.It was found out that at this stage silence meant a stateof peace, non-interference from outside inthe internal affairs of Russia,a time of creative work and peaceful existence under the protectionof God, which became especially important afterthe establishment of the Horde yoke.

Mijloace de redare a filiației în spațiul romanic medieval. Polisemia prepoziției de

The preposition de ( lat. de) is being used in early medieval Latin documents in order to compile the complementary denomination, marking mainly the provenance of the denominate (for the first centuries of the documentary use, at least). De prepositional structures occur always after the personal name (i.e. first name) with the same functionality in the medieval documents from the whole Roman space. But the vernacular way of name composition, involving the use of the preposition de with the parentage meaning (inherited in the Western Romance languages, but not in the Eastern Romance ones) are also being registered in the Romance documents (from the XIIth century in the aragonese official documents, and from the XIVth century in the Occitan ones). These prepositional phrases always involve an anthroponym (as selected Noun Phrase), indicating thus the parentage relation, instead of the provenance indication, as seen before, in the official acts drafted in the chancellery Latin. When these two different ways of composition of the complementary denomination are being used in the official acts in the same historical stage, one can expect the complete elimination of the preposition: few members of the same occitan family bear the same name, but linked differently: Ramun de la Pena, Miquel de Pena, but Bernat Pena. On the other hand, Romanian inherited the preposition de but only with the provenance use (e.g. Stan de Câne, in which Câne is the name of the personal estate); for the parentage meaning, the Old Romanian specialized some genitival proclitic markers (al, lui), used mainly in the popular anthroponymy that one can encounter in the Latin Medieval documents: Ioan al popae; Dumitru al Myrkey, Zawa fychor allu Mayne.

Static and Seismic Safety of the Inclined Tower of Portogruaro: A Preliminary Numerical Approach

Masonry towers are peculiar structures with complex structural behavior despite biased conclusions deriving from their geometrical regularity and simplicity. Their geometrical features and the epistemic uncertainty that masonry material bears strongly influence their static and seismic behavior. This paper investigates a remarkable and representative case study. The bell tower of Portogruaro (Italy) is a 57 m high tall construction, built in the XII-th century, and has a notable inclination. The Italian Guideline for the safety assessment of masonry towers is a key focus in this paper, highlighting the pros and cons of different suggested approaches. Some relevant proposals are presented in this paper in order to address the seismic safety assessment of masonry bell towers. The findings show that very slender structures do not meet the guidelines recommendations due to limitations in their current stress state. In addition, in similar cases, the recommended values for the mechanical properties of masonry material led to predicting non-withstanding structural behavior, questioning the correct choice of the adapted material properties. Advanced pushover analysis has been conducted in order to investigate the results of the simplified approach in terms of failure patterns and seismic safety estimation. The simulations are implemented for four different hypothetical scenarios of the existing masonry mechanical properties. The results obtained for the case study tower reflect a different perspective in the seismic assessment of masonry towers when specific approaches are defined. The preliminary results on the safety of Portogruaro Tower show a significant variability of seismic safety based on the adopted scenario, highlighting the necessity to pay attention to the preservation state of the present case and of similar ones.

Burials of the XIII–XIV centuries in the Egiin-Gol river valley (Northern Mongolia): burial rite features

The article analyzes of the results of studies, condacted in 1997–2000 by archaeologists in the Egiin Gol river valley, northern Mongolia. The findings of 3 burial grounds, where burials of the XIII–XIV centuries were excavated, were examined – Mukhdagiin am, Kholtost nuga and Elst hotol. Based on the characteristics of the funeral rite, 4 groups of burials have been identified. The first included 9 graves from the necropolises of Elst hotol and Kholtost nuga. Corpses in them were placed without additional intra-grave structures. They were laid on their backs. The body was oriented with the head facing northwest, north, northeast or east. A shin, head or part of the spine of small cattle were placed near the hands or feet of the deceased in the grave. The second group included 4 burials of the Mukhdagiin am burial ground. The deceased were placed in wooden coffins and were oriented with their heads to the north or northwest. The shin of a sheep was placed vertically near the head. The third group included single burial of the the Mukhdagiin am burial ground. It had an undercut in the grave pit, where the body was buried. The fourth group included a grave from the Kholtost nuga necropolis. In it the deceased was wrapped in birch bark. During the first half of the II millennium, in the lower part of the Egiin Gola valley, the dominant position was occupied by the bearers of burial traditions of the first group. Representatives of the second group of burials appear in this area in the XIII century, comparable to the Sayantui funeral rite. The burials of the third and fourth groups date back to the beginning of the II millennium.

Fortified settlements of the XII–XIV centuries in the European Northeast. Pozheg hillfort (reconstruction experience)

The article presents a brief review of the results of studies of the fortification lines of the Pozheg hillfort – the only well-fortified settlement studied in the European Northeast (Komi Republic), which functioned during the XII–XIV centuries. This small hillfort (about 1550 m 2) was founded in the valley of the Vym River as an Old Rus outpost on the way to the Trans-Urals. It reached its greatest prosperity in the first half of the XIII century. The remains of buildings of three construction stages (XII, XIII and XIV centuries) have been studied by excavations at the site, the system of wood and earth fortifications (ditches, log walls, bulwarks) typical for small fortresses of medieval Russia has been discovered. An attempt is made to reconstruct the general appearance of the defensive structures of the Pozheg ancient settlement and a preliminary assessment of the main labor inputs in their construction is carried out. The types of fortress buildings are distinguished, the schemes of defensive lines, the size of the ancient settlement and their changes by stages of construction are considered.

Medieval burials of Taldinskiy-1 burial ground

The article deals with the burials at the Taldy-1 burial ground (Republic of Kazakhstan). They belong to the early and classical Middle Ages. Despite the low information content of the early medieval burials, they are of interest at the regional, central Kazakhstan level. The burials considered expand the factual base that is currently insufficient. The burial rite is clearly presented in building No 58. Here, the burial of a child was investigated. It was accompanied by the cattle skeleton. The skeleton position bears a resemblance the posture of a horse in the studied burials of the Turkic culture. The burial of the classical Middle Ages is dated to the XIII century by the radiocarbon method. It was a non-inventory burial of a girl aged 12–13 years. The burial was arranged in a pit. A graphic reconstruction of the appearance was carried out on the skull. The peculiarities of the burial rites allow the researchers to raise the issue of identifying syncretic Muslim-pagan assemblages and the spread of Islam in Central Kazakhstan. Analyzing the materials of the region, it is possible to establish the duration of the process of ritual transformation, which lasted for at least two centuries.

The image of the luminosity of the divine nature of Christ in the Western European temple decoration of the IV-VIII centuries.

The main subject of this research is the tradition of visual representation of the luminosity of the divine nature in Western European Christian art of the IV-VIII centuries. The objects of study are fragments of monumental temple decorations containing images, both literal and symbolic, of this divine phenomenon, as well as written sources related to the interpretation of these images. The focus of the research is on the Western European artistic tradition of depicting the halo of Christ and its change during the period under review. The purpose of this work, which is the first part of the study, the chronological framework of which covers the period from the IV to the XIII centuries, was to compile a holistic view of the development of the iconographic tradition of representing the theme "I am the light of the world", the luminosity of the divine nature of Christ in the context of the study of the visual language of Western European medieval religious art of the IV-VIII centuries. The visual sources of this work are Christian churches that have preserved the monumental decoration of the IV - VIII centuries, which are located on the territory of Rome, Ravenna, Milan, Naples and surrounding areas. The methodology on which this research is based is represented by typological, iconographic and formal stylistic methods of analysis. The novelty of the present study is a detailed analysis and systematization of various visual representations of the luminosity of the divine nature of Christ, first of all, variants of the image of the halo and their transformation over time. Based on the studied sources, the author has compiled a certain classification picture, which allows forming a holistic view of the formation and development of the artistic tradition of representing this topic.

Рельефные плиты из баптистерия в Сплите: проблемы изучения

The baptistery of the city of Split on the eastern coast of the Adriatic in the IX-XI centuries was built in the small temple of the Diocletian's palace, and in the XIII century a font of 12 marble slabs appeared in it, six of which are covered with carvings; the rest of the plates are the spolias of antique sarcophagi and their reliefs are cut out. As a result of many years of research of the monument, all scientists agree that the plates with carvings were taken from the altar barrier of either the Split cathedral of St. Domnius (the former mausoleum of Diocletian), or the church of St. Peter and Moses in Solin. Versions of the identification of the figures on the slab with the image of the ruler on the throne, the figure standing next to and the figure lying below make up two large groups: the sitting figure is either Christ or a some king. Most researchers are inclined to two options: Croatian king Peter Kreshimir IV (1058-1074) or king Dimitar Zvonimir (1076-1089). The details of the subsequent existence of the monument are very interesting: in the hands of the standing figure there was previously an object, most likely a scroll, subsequently removed, and the inscription on the upper field of the slab was erased. In addition, the historical circumstances of the epoch are analyzed, including the weakening of Byzantine influence in the region in the XI century with the strengthening of western influence, which led to liturgical changes reflected in the architecture. The stylistic features of the monument make it possible to attract a number of regional analogies.

МЕСТО ДЕЙСТВИЯ В РАССКАЗАХ «СОБРАНИЯ СТАРОДАВНИХ ПОВЕСТЕЙ»: ПРОВИНЦИИ ЯПОНИИ, ИХ УРОЖЕНЦЫ, НАМЕСТНИКИ И ГОСТИ

Among collections of Japanese setsuwa tales, Konjaku-monogatari-shū of the XIIth century stands out not only for its volume, but also for its breadth of geographical coverage. Memorable incidents from the life of the Japanese are placed here in a global context, while at the same time each of the Japanese tales has local characteristics. The article examines the functions of toponyms in the structure of the tales and ways of linking the narrative to places on the map of Japan and traces the connection between each of these ways and the type of source to which a tale goes back. Focusing on several Japanese provinces, the authors analyze the contexts in which their names are mentioned, searching for the possible unity of motives in the tales united not just by the place of action, but also by a toponym. The appendix to the article contains a Russian translation of the tale, which mentions the region of Echizen (26–17).

Features of the economic development of ancient Russian and German cities in the XII – first third of the XIII century

The subject of the study is the economic life of the city of Ancient Russia and the medieval city of Germany. The object of the study is an ancient Russian and Western European city in the XII – first third of the XIII centuries. For more than a century, the debate has been going on about whether Russia is following its own special path of development, different from the Western one, or whether our country is developing in the general direction of the world historical process, lagging behind Western European states for various reasons. The appeal to the economic problems of the city is due to the exceptional importance of the economic sphere of life, it determines the course of all processes taking place in society, affecting the other subsystems of society. For comparison, we have chosen one of the dominant political centers of Russia in the era of fragmentation – the Vladimir-Suzdal Principality and the cities of Germany, which are a classic example of a medieval city in Western Europe. The work used a comparative historical method that allows us to identify common and specific features of the development of the economic sphere of the urban centers of Ancient Russia and medieval Europe in order to reveal the versatility of the phenomenon of the ancient Russian city. The ancient Russian and medieval German city in the XII – first third of the XIII century had a deep connection with the nearby agricultural district and were agrarian in nature. Despite this, the most important direction of the economic development of the cities of Vladimir-Suzdal land and medieval Germany was their development as trade and craft centers. Merchant associations operate in both countries, and active trade and credit operations are carried out. Both cities were distinguished by the differentiation of the craft and its narrow specialization. The novelty of the study lies in the fact that a comparative analysis of the level of economic development of a significant number of ancient Russian and German medieval cities was carried out. As a result of the study, it was concluded that in German cities of the High Middle Ages, a special urban world was developing, characterized by strict regulation of almost all aspects of the life of citizens. The ancient Russian cities, on the contrary, did not develop a specific urban law that would operate only within the city walls.

GENEALOGY OF HADEWIJCH'S CONCEPT OF MINNE: SECULAR AND RELIGIOUS ASPECTS

B a c k g r o u n d . The article is devoted to the Minnemystik of Hadewijch of Brabant in the XIII century. It deals with the genesis of Hadewijch's concept of Minne in its relation to the monastic Cistercian mysticism of Bernard of Clairvaux, William of Saint-Thierry in the XII century and Beatrice of Nazareth in the XIII century. It also considers the conception of theologist and philosopher Richard of Saint-Victor in the XII century. Considering the existing advances of researchers on Hadewijch's Minnemystik, since the XX century, this investigation especially focuses on the primary role of the secular tradition of minnesingers and trobairitz of the mid-XIII century in her texts. M e t h o d s. The main method of the article is a comparative analysis. It is used to find the common meaning of Minne in two traditions: secular and religious minnesingers. The historical-philosophical approach allows us to demonstrate the conceptual link between monastic theology in the XII–XIII centuries and Hadewijch's beguinal Minnemystik. R e s u l t s. The article sheds light on Hadewijch's concept of the Minne and stresses the primary role of the secular and religious conceptions of predecessors and contemporaries in Hadewich's Minnemystik. C o n c l u s i o n . The author underlines that Hadewijch's concept of Minne comes from the secular tradition of minnesingers and, especially, trobairitz. It also derives from the XII-century male and female mystic theology, which follows Augustine. Thus, the concept of the Minne is deeply connected with the notion of Amor and the tradition of "courtly love", and with Caritas and the tradition of "pure love".

Istorijom oblikovani identitet kosovskometohijskih Srba

The author considers characteristics meaning of Serbian culture in Kosovo and Metohija, thoughtout a historical period dating from the XIII and XIV century to the present days. Theoretical and methodological difficulties of such studies are being stressed in the introductory part of the paper. In the second part, existential conditions of cultural life of Serbian people are presented both during the Middle Ages and a long period of the Turkish domination and Albanian islamization. Yugoslav state experience (1918- 2000) and NATO aggression are discussed in the context of culture. The third part, deals with basic characteristic meanings of Serbian culture: 1) Shift of cultural creation and destruction of cultural heritage, 2) Cultural life in the condition of violence, isalmization, and expulsion, 3) Cultural contacts. 4) Tragic feeling of life, 5) Orthodox faith as a central point of culture, 6) Folk features of culture, 7) Absence of cultural institutions, of institution, 8) Mythology awareness of Kosovo battle, 9) Endowment, 10) Impact of Kosovo cultural heritage within the Serbian cultural space. In the final part of the paper, the discontinuity of Serbian culture in Kosovo and Metohija is emphsize. Afret having had a freedom of Medieval cultural creativity expressed through Ortodox Cristianity, the Serbs have found themselves in a long lasting period of violence, expulsion and struggle for their biological survival.

Кочевые тюркские племена Мангышлака в конце XI — первой половине XII в.: по сведениям мусульманской историографии домонгольского периода

Кочевые тюркские племена Мангышлака в конце XI — первой половине XII в.: по сведениям мусульманской историографии домонгольского периода

«The Secret History» – the cultural heritage of the nomads of Central Asia.

The article presents the results of an analysis of the «The secret history», a monument of writing of the XIII century. It makes important discoveries regarding the place that this cultural text occupies in the spiritual culture of the peoples of Central Asia, the ways through which it has reached our days and the phenomenon of continuity. The «The secret history» is a genealogy of the ancestors of the world-famous conqueror Genghis Khan, dating from the beginning of the VIII century, continued during his reign during the lifetime of Genghis Khan himself and completed in 1240 under Crown Prince Ogedei Khan. The value of the chronicle lies in the fact that it contains detailed information about the cultural, spiritual, social, and political phenomena that took place in the history of the medieval nomadic Turks, their worldview, intertribal and tribal relations, and the rulers who ruled the country. The article examines the internal connections in the text of the «The secret history», contextual elements, connections of epic poems-dastans of the Turkic peoples with historical documents that have become sources of the chronicle. Genotheism, the ancestor of Borte-Chino from the «The secret history» is considered by analogy with the batyr Borte-Chino from the medieval history of the Turkic peoples. Important information and information from the «The secret history» through the heirs of Genghis Khan, who ruled over various states of Central Asia, formed the basis for the appearance of numerous genealogies with similar content and motives. Based on the study of the spiritual heritage of the Turks who lived in the Great Steppe before and after the appearance of Genghis Khan, issues of succession of generations, influence on subsequent chronicles, the «The secret history» is assessed as a very valuable monument, a common cultural heritage for the peoples of Central Asia. The results of the study show the importance of fundamental study of the «The secret history» in the context of preserving the cultural heritage of Central Asia. The article focuses on the importance of in-depth analysis of the original of this monument of writing, taking into account the role of the «The secret history» in the formation of the cultural mosaic landscape of the Kazakhs.

RESEARCH OF THE DEFENSIVE HIGH WALL AND PROBABLE RELICS OF THE PRINCE'S RESIDENCE IN THENORTH-EASTERN PART OF LVIV'S MIDTOWN

The author describes the architectural and archaeological research conducted by him, or with his participation, of objects in the north-eastern part of the lviv's midtown, which probably belong to the period of the formation of a new part of the city, intended for the capital of the Rus kingdom (mid. XIII - mid. XIV c.). Described: 1 - features of a well-preserved fragment of the defensive high wall of the city, indicating its construction on a previously uninhabited area; 2 - mysterious relics of the original layout and elements of the late Romanesque architecture of the representative building, which was later incorporated into the monastic ensemble; 3 - masonry features and construction periodization of the circle of the main courtyard of the Dominican monastery, indicating two early stages of its construction: 2 half XIII century and the beginning 15th century; 4 – an archaeologically uncovered section of a part of a high wall, which had a distinctly representative character; 5 – a stone underground liturgical chest behind the main altar of the Church. A cursory historiographical review of the circumstances surrounding the establishment of the Dominican monastery in Lviv and a new interpretation of the sources in the light of the findings presented have been added. The research adds new arguments in favor of the localization of the palace-residence of Prince Lev Danylovych in this part of the Midtown, and it is even quite confident to interpret the preserved building structures and architectural elements as his relics. Key words: formation of Midtown, high defensive wall, princely palace-residence; Dominican monastery, masonry technique.

ІСТОРІЯ СТАНОВЛЕННЯ ТА РОЗВИТКУ ЗАПОБІЖНОГО ЗАХОДУ У ВИДІ ТРИМАННЯ ПІД ВАРТОЮ НА УКРАЇНСЬКИХ ЗЕМЛЯХ (ХІІІ – ПОЧАТОК ХХ СТ.)

The article examines the genesis of preventive measures in the form of custody in criminal proceedings on the territory of modern Ukraine. Issues of the origin and development of detention in criminal justice were considered, which existed in Ukrainian lands during the long-term historical development of Ukrainian statehood with a time frame from the XIII century to Soviet times. The results of the analysis of the origin and evolution of custody in the system of preventive measures in the criminal process on the territory of modern Ukraine during the periods of Kyivan Rus, Cossacks, Austro-Hungarian and Russian empires in the historical aspect are presented. It has been proven that the emergence of a preventive measure in the form of custody took place in the kniaz period and found its consolidation in Russkaya Pravda, when a person could be arrested to be brought to court (of the kniaz). The preventive measure in the form of custody was developed in the tsarist period, when it was about being placed in prison, and custody reached its greatest development in the imperial period, in the Statute of Criminal Justice of 1864. Despite its progressiveness, detention in custody violated the rights of convicted persons, and was also characterized by particular severity and repressiveness, because this preventive measure caused suffering to people, humiliated human dignity and protected the political regime.

Новый взгляд на «Историю монголов» Иоан­на де Плано Карпини

Research objectives: This article analyzes a new edition of the book by the famous Franciscan ambassador to the Mongols, John de Plano Carpini (1182–1252), who made a long journey from Lyon to Central Mongolia in 1245–1247 where he witnessed the enthronement of the khagan, Guyuk (1246–1248). Following the results of his difficult and dangerous journey, he wrote a report “The History of the Mongols,” in which he described quite fully and accurately what he saw and heard. Research results and scientific novelty: The work of Plano Carpini was published in Russian three times: in 1795, 1825 and 1911; the last translation, made by A.I. Malein, was then published more than once and gradually overgrown with comments. However, all these editions cannot be considered fully satisfying the requirements of publishing medieval sources. The new edition in question here meets the standards of modern science. It includes an introductory part, a critical text of the source, its new translation into Russian and detailed comments made by professional medievalist historians. In the comments, various aspects of the Central Asian civilization of the XIII century, with which the Franciscan mission had a chance to come into contact, are covered as fully as possible: material and spiritual culture of nomads, organization of their society, military affairs and many others. Despite the high level of preparation of this publication, some points in it do not exclude an alternative interpretation.

Исследование случаев соответствия конструкций с послелогами сериальным глагольным конструкциям (на материале монгольских текстов XIII, XVII и XX вв.)

The article deals with cases of correspondence of constructions with postpositions to serial verbal constructions, an attempt is made to identify the typological features of verbal serialization in the Mongolian language. As a research material, written monuments of different time slices of the Mongolian language are used, namely Latin transcription of the chronicle “The Secret History of the Mongols” of the XIII century; the chronicle “Altan tobchi” of the 17th century; translation of the “Secret History of the Mongol” into the modern Mongolian language of the XX century. Based on the analysis, the number of similar correspondences on specific time slices was revealed. So, in the texts of older written monuments, one case of the use of serial verbal constructions was found to convey the same meaning, which in the modern text is expressed by a postpositional construction. In all the other 12 cases of such correspondences – the serial construction occurs precisely in the text of the 20th century, there is a tendency for an increase in the number of correspondences of postpositions to serial constructions over the course of the history of the language. Also, based on the considered examples of serial constructions found in our comparative study, we can assume that the Mongolian language is characterized by serialization of an asymmetric type.

The Zoroastrian Calendar in New Persian Poetry: “Names of Persian Days” by Masʿud Saʿd Salman

The calendar introductions were quite widespread in the Persian poetry of the Early Classical period (X–XIII centuries). The court poets on the occasion of a seasonal holiday (Nauruz, Mihran or Sade) or the beginning of a new season turned not only to the description of weather phenomena and changes in nature, but also to the Iranian names of months and days related to holidays and seasons. Such poetization of the Zoroastrian calendar became an integral part of Persian calendar poetry; references to Zoroastrian names of days and months can be found in many poets of the era: Rūdakī, Manūčihrī, ʿUnṣurī, Farruxī. In the cycle “Names of Persian days and months” by Masʿud Saʿd Salman this poetization is revealed most fully: each day of each Zoroastrian month in the poems of this cycle is heralded as a holiday. This article publishes a commented translation of the largest part of the cycle: the thirty poems devoted to the days of the Zoroastrian month. Despite the fact that the works of Masʿud Saʿd Salman are the object of scientific interest for a wide range of both national and foreign researchers, this poetic cycle is introduced into scientific discourse for the first time.

Problems of attribution of plate armor from the collection of the Alava Museum of Arms, Spain (on the question of scaly shells in the west of the medieval Ecumene, X–XIII centuries)

In the article the scale armour from Museode Armeríade Álava collection is explored. Among the specialists it is considered to be the earliest Medieval European scale armour of 10-13 centuries. After the comparison of the scale armor fragments in Europe, on the Balkans (the fragments there belong to Byzantine armory circle) and Middle East the author puts into question its background and dating. To wide the search circle the explorer pays attention on two ceremonial armour sets. One from Museode lEjército of Toledo and the second from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The breast plates of both sets have the same construction and decoration to the breast plate from Museo de Armeríade Álava. At the same time the set from Museo del Ejército of Toledo attribution that is given at the official museum site as the armour of Mexican Indian chief of the Conquest period is considered to be absolutely incorrect by the author of the article. Because iron as the material for local metallurgical industry of the period was simple unknown and unavailable for metalwork. The attribution of the second set from The Metropolitan Museum of Art that is given at the official museum site seams much more probable. The American specialists attribute it as Chinese and date 18tht c. Based on it the author comes to the conclusion that the breast plate from Museo de Armería de Álava has nothing to European Medieval period and can be attributed as Chinese ceremonial armour set of 18th c.