Red List Comment Submission

Commenting on: Armour and helmet making

Section one - About you

Name

Are you willing for your name to appear on the website as a reviewer?

Yes please
No thanks

What is your reason for contacting us?

What is your interest or experience in this craft?

Do you have any suitable images or photos to support your entry?

No I don't
Yes, please contact me about them

Please give more details of your interest or experience of this craft and any organisations, guilds or associations that you are representing.

Section two - Description of the craft

Are you commenting on an existing craft?

If you are commenting on an existing craft, please select it here and skip the next two questions

You are suggesting a new craft that is not already featured on the Red List

Please enter the name of the craft you would like us to add here.

Craft category

If this is a new craft type please select the most suitable category

Please give a definition of the craft in one or two sentences.

Where in the world is the craft historically associated?

Please identify country, region, county or town

Where in the UK is the craft currently practised?

Please identify country, region, county or town

When was the craft first practised in the UK?

Please identify an era/century/approximate historic period.

How endangered would you say this craft is?

Heritage Crafts uses a system of four categories of risk to assess the viability of heritage crafts. A heritage craft is considered to be viable if there are sufficient craftspeople to transmit the craft skills to the next generation. For more information on definitions see http://heritagecrafts.org.uk/redlist/categories-of-risk/

Currently Viable (are in a healthy state and skills are being passed to the next generation)
Endangered (skills can be passed on but there are serious concerns about their ongoing viability)
Critically Endangered (there is serious risk that skills won't be passed on)
Extinct ( ‘extirpated’ or ‘locally extinct’ in the UK)

Section three - Current numbers of those practising the craft in the UK

Number of professional makers (main income)

People earning their main craft income from this craft (selling, commissions, conservation/ restoration and/or teaching).

Number of professional makers (part-time or side line to main income)

People practicing this craft commercially (selling, commissions, conservation/restoration and/or teaching) but as less than half of their income.

Number of trainees

People acquiring skills in order to become a professional in this craft, they probably have to work under supervision even if they are earning money while training.

Number of serious amateur makers

People whose knowledge and ability is at a level of the most skilled practitioners of this craft.

Number of UK leisure makers and learners

People who do not intend to practice this craft professionally or at the highest level.

Section four - Issues affecting the viability of the craft

Existing content:

Market issues: There is never going to be massive demand for armour. It is a very specialist and limited market (there’s not much else you can use armour for) and is very expensive as it takes a long time to make. The main customers are re-enactors, museums and collectors.
Competition from cheap imports: The biggest threats to the survival of armour making are imports of cheaply-made and poor quality products from places like India. Many re-enactors start with this armour as it is adequate and inexpensive. A re-enactor could equip themselves for around £1000 if they took this route whereas, buying British armour would probably cost 10 times that amount.
There are very few people practising the craft and few people entering it – but the demand is quite low.
Market issues: Most modern armourers produce armour out of sheet steel, which is less strong – but nobody needs armour which can withstand an arrow being shot by a long bow, so this sort of skill will die out.
Dilution of skills: Some armourers will do crude/rough work by hand and then finish by machine, while others will do almost all the work completely by machine.

Training and recruitment issues

e.g. lack of qualifications, funding for training etc.

Tick for yes