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Kamakura Warrior Tour now offering T-shirts that are the spitting image of real samurai armor

Krista Rogers Mar 13, 2019
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Now’s your chance to snag a samurai armor-inspired T-shirt during your next visit to Kamakura, a beautiful day trip destination from Tokyo.

Japanese children often have to endure seeing beautiful displays of samurai armor-themed decor in their homes on May 5, Children’s Day, of each year. When it’s right there at the tip of their fingertips, who could blame kids–or adults, for that matter–for feeling the enticement of wanting to try it out for themselves?

▼ We sure would have a hard time resisting taking that helmet for a little test drive when it’s just sitting there…

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The good news for anyone itching for such an experience is that the seaside city of Kamakura, about an hour south of Tokyo by train, offers visitors a special service called the Kamakura Warrior Tour, which we’ve covered before. Participants are garbed in contemporary armor or clothing of the feudal Kamakura era (1185-1333) and guided on an approximately four-hour tour culminating in a typical samurai lunch.

Check out these sample photos for just how badass you could look while strolling around town.

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A post shared by 榊昭一 (@waka0417)

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A post shared by 鎧屋星月 (@mononofu_chie)

▼ A selection of some of the armor choices for your guided tour

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A post shared by 鎌倉智士 (@satoshi_kamakura)

Notice anything different about the armor that the woman’s modeling in the last video clip? If not, go back and take a closer look, because it’s actually a T-shirt!

It might sound like a joke, but the T-shirt certainly fooled this unsuspecting writer at the very least. The shirts are a recent addition to the lineup of products at the Kamakura Warrior Tour, and the illusion is apparently even stronger when seen from a distance.

▼ When wearing the shirt, making scary-looking faces is not required, but highly recommended.

▼ Design detail (front)

▼ Design detail (back)

According to the tour group, the T-shirts maximize two defining characteristics to create the impression of real three-dimensional armor: 1. the sides and top of the shoulders have realistic print patterns, which contributes to an overall sense of texture and layers, and 2. their deft use of digitally-constructed kozane, the hundreds of small plates with holes in them that are linked together to form lamellar armor.

The T-shirts can be purchased by anyone, not only tour participants, on the Kamakura Warrior Shop website for 4,320 yen (US$39) each, but note that all sizes are currently sold out. A note on the same page reads that they are currently in the process of restocking and interested buyers should send an email to info@izakamakura.jp for information about when the next shipment will arrive. Also, if you do happen to have plans to visit Kamakura in person, don’t forget to pick up your free-to-use smartphone once you arrive in the city!

Source: Japaaan
Featured image: Kamakura Warrior Shop (edited by SoraNews24)
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