29 July 2015

Jing Lan (井闌)

Ming Chinese Arrow Tower
Drawing of a Jing Lan, from 'Wu Bei Yao Lue (《武備要略》)'.
The Jing Lan (井闌, lit. 'Water well lining') is the last of the 'Classic Trio' of Chinese siege engine. It is an immobile wooden tower, usually constructed just outside of enemy fortifications during siege, so that archers on the tower can attack enemy troops stationed on the wall.

A tried-and-true weapon, the design of Jing Lan remains essentially unchanged throughout the ages. Nevertheless, the proliferation of gunpowder weaponry during Ming period renders this weapon less effective than before.

2 comments:

  1. They call an immovable tower an "engine"?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Well, not exactly, I call it that ;P.

    A lot of siege engine such as the counterweight trebuchet, are immobile too.

    ReplyDelete

< > Home

Random Quotes & Trivia

GREAT MING MILITARY © , All Rights Reserved. BLOG DESIGN BY Sadaf F K.