Researchers discovered fish-scale armor that is an early version of bionics. The armor was found in a 2,500-Year-Old Chinese burial site. The military garment was made of more than 5,000 leather scales, which make it look like the overlapping scales of a fish. According to lead researcher Patrick Wertmann, the armor is “a light, highly efficient one-size-fits-all defensive garment for soldiers of a mass army."
The fish-like design is not an aesthetic choice, but more of a reinforcement of defense. The overlapping leather scales "strengthen the human skin for better defense against blow, stab and shot," said study co-researcher Mayke Wagner, the scientific director of the Eurasia Department of the German Archeological Institute and head of its Beijing office.
Image credit: Dongliang Xu/Turfan Museum, Patrick Wertmann