The Silk Road Designs Armoury

Most basic, yet not common in Eurasia, was a solid defense, a single plate riveted to the helmet dome (or made in one piece with it) reaching from the edge of the face, covering the ear, neck, and the other ear, to the opposite edge of the face. This is most commonly found among the earlier Eurasian Nomad helmets and is similar to the Bascinet style of helmet in Western Europe. Some later Indian helmets are also made in this way. Pictured at the left is an Arab helmet with this defense. Two other helmets made in this way are the Armenian helmet, on the left at the discussion of Conical Helmets and the Kipchak helmet, on the left at the discussion of Kolpak Helmets.

Another back and sides defense which appears generally in East Asia and Eastern Central Asia, is one of bands, suspended from the dome by internal leathers or thongs. On European helmets a similar defense has been called a "Lobster Tail". This defense is constructed like the Armour of Bands, and, like it, is probably a development from Lamellar. While not as common as Lamellar Aventails, it appears sometimes in Persia and China. It is, however, a primary defense in Japan, where the only alternative of note is a similar defense made of lamellar fastened together into rigid bands. A generic Central Asian helmet with this defense is shown at the right in the discussion of Round Helmet Domes and on all three of the Japanese helmets at the discussion of Visors. A narrower version of the same defense, found together with separate ear defenses, is far more common and is discussed below.

The most common form of plate defense for the sides and back of the face is an arangement of three separate sections, one for the back and one for each side.

The side defenses may be called "ear" plates or "cheek" plates, depending on placement in relation to the face. This is a major distinction between the classical Roman helmet and the Asian helmet that replaced it.
On classical Roman helmets the back defense was comparatively wide. It began immediately past the ears and was made solid with the dome. The side plates were hinged to the dome at the temples. They covered the cheeks and ended at the edge of the face, before the back plate. Some of these, used by the cavalry, covered the ear as well - ending at the back edge of the ear (see the cavalry helmet pictured at the right). More commonly, they ended just before the ear, leaving an opening for the ear (as shown on the Roman helmet illustrated at the discussion of the Bill at the subpage on Visors).
The side plates of the Romano-Sassanian helmet, on the other hand, were shifted back so that they were hinged above the ear. With the ear as center, these side plates extended further back, leaving a narrower back plate. The back plate on these Central Asian influenced helmets was also no longer made in one piece with the dome, but was hinged to it (generally by leather straps). As these side plates were fairly broad and continued to cover the cheeks, they may still be called "cheek plates", however, centered on the ear rather than the cheek, they were now more properly "ear plates". With time, the ear plates narrowed, so that they often offer no protection for the cheek at all.
In Europe, the use of ear plates continued until approximately the 10th century. Some are the small ear plates similar to those used in the East, others are expanded to give some protection to the cheeks and chin, sometimes joining at the bottom as on the Viking helmet shown on the left at the discussion of Nasals at the subpage on Visors. These defenses virtually disappear in Europe after that time (though they very infrequently appear even into the 12th century). They reapear in a very different form several centuries later in the Armet or Close Helmet, and finally, of course, in the virtual copy of the Eastern Helmet which is called the "Lobster Tail" Helmet.

In the East, ear plates continued in popularity until armour went out of use.
While commonly used together with a Back Plate, this was by no means always the case. Often the helmet only possessed ear plates (as the Indian helmet illustrated on the left at the discussion of Occulars, at the subpage on Visors), or it possessed ear plates with an Aventail, as illustrated here, at the left.
When there was a backplate it was either (and most commonly) a single plate suspended from the dome on hinges or internal leathers (like that shown on the helmet at the left at the discussion of Round Domes and the one at the right at the discussion of Shishak Domes) or a series of bands suspended from the dome by internal leathers, as illustrated at the right. This is the style adopted by Western Europe in the late Middle Ages.

As Ear Plates developed after the "Sassanian" helmet, they were simplified and reduced. Sometimes, quite minimal Ear Plates were used, generally as part of an Aventail, which covered only the ear itself.
More commonly, the ear plate was rectangular, with a scalloped or pointed bottom. While not very wide, it was somewhat longer than just the ear and covered some part of the cheek. Many ear plates were dished and pierced in the area immediately over the ear to allow better hearing.
A common, expanded form of ear plate had a tapered rectangular plate as a base, with a plate behind it to protect the neck behind the ear, one below it to cover some of the chin, and one in front, to protect a substantial portion of the cheek. The helmet above right has such an expanded ear plate. Another, slightly different form is illustrated on the helmet at the left at the discussion of Round Domes.

An alternative type of ear plate consisted of one or more discs attached to the dome by internal leathers. A helmet with this defense is shown to the left. While an Eastern style, probably of Mongol origin, a disc earplate (with a single disk) appears sometimes in Northern European art of the 14th century.

The three plate arrangement of Ear and Back defenses was so successful that the form is not only seen in solid plates but is followed in padded cloth helmets, as well as Brigandine, Lamellar and even Maile Aventails. The helmet on the right is a popular Chinese and Korean form which, almost invariably, had a Brigandine "Aventail" separated into separate Ear and Back defenses, as illustrated.

Further Information on Helmets