- Breastplate
:"This can also refer to a piece of riding equipment: see
Breastplate (tack) ."A breastplate is a device worn over the torso either to protect the torso from injury, or as an item of religious significance, or as an item of status. A breastplate was sometimes worn by mythological beings as a distinctive item of clothing.
Armour
In medieval weaponry, the breastplate is the front portion of
plate armour covering the torso. It has been an armour mainstay since ancient times and was one of the last pieces of functional armour to be used on the battlefield because it protected the vital organs without limiting mobility.Religious
In
Judaism , the Breastplate ("Hoshen ") is a sacred garment worn by the High Priest, woven out of multiple fabrics and set with twelve precious stones representing each of thetribes of Israel . Traditionally, it had a fold containing theUrim and Thummim . The Breastplate is described in some detail in ]Metaphorical
In the
Bible , the word Breastplate is used figuratively to describe protecting oneself from unrighteousness (cf, , , etc).Mythological
Both
Zeus andAthena are sometimes depicted as wearing a goatskin shield or breastplate called anAegis . At the center of Athena's shield was the head ofMedusa .References
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