Kusazuri

The kusazuri is the part of the Samurai’s armor that looks like a metal skirt. It is attached to the Cuirass in order to protect the thighs and hip area. It is usually made of leather or iron and broken up into 4 to 8 pieces. Once the Tosei Gusoku armor came into use the goal of the design was to allow more agility while increasing robustness so the kusazuri could be made of around 13 different plates. The evolution of the kusazuri throughout time periods varied mostly by how many plates were used to put the kusazuri together. As with most of the armor it became shorter and lighter with each rendition to increase the mobility of the warrior. 

L, M. (2023). Introduce the samurai armor Kusazuri History and types. romance of men. https://romanceofmen.com/blogs/armor-knowledge/introduce-the-samurai-armor-kusazuri-history-and-types