History and rules for applying war paint. History and rules for drawing war paint Coloring on the guard of the homeland

Along with the development of language as a communication tool, non-verbal communication methods developed. Before learning to speak coherently, a person used the limbs of the hands and facial expressions for communication, unconsciously learning to put so much meaning into each arc and straight line on the face that all this was enough to be perfectly understood by the interlocutor. Going to war or hunting, he applied a symmetrical ornament on his face, emphasizing intentions, and with the help of facial muscles, the coloring came to life and began to work according to specific rules.

In this article, we tried to raise the main milestones in war paint, find out how it is used today, and also put together a short instruction on how to apply it.

The history of the appearance of war paint

It is known that war paint was used by the ancient Celts, who used indigo blue for this, obtained from dyeing woad. The Celts applied the resulting solution to the naked body or painted its bare parts. Although it is impossible to say with complete certainty that the Celts were the first to come up with the idea of ​​applying war paint on the face - the woad was used back in the Neolithic era.

New Zealand Maori applied permanent symmetrical patterns to the skin of the face and body, which were called "ta-moko". Such a tattoo was extremely important in Maori culture; by “ta-moko” one could read the social status of a person, but, in addition, it was an attempt to make “permanent camouflage” and at the same time create a prototype of a military uniform. In 1642, Abel Tasman first reached the shores of New Zealand and met face to face with the locals. In the diaries that have survived from that time, there is not a word about the fact that he met people with tattoos on their faces. And the expedition of 1769, which included the naturalist Joseph Banks, witnessed in their observations strange and unusual tattoos on the faces of local aborigines. That is, at least another hundred years passed before the Maori began to use tattoos.

Vaida dyeing

North American Indians used dyes to apply designs to leather, which helped them, as in the case of the Maori, to personalize. The Indians believed that the patterns would help them gain magical protection in battle, and the colored patterns on the faces of the fighters helped them look more ferocious and dangerous.

In addition to painting their own bodies, the Indians applied patterns on their horses; it was believed that a certain pattern on the horse's body would protect it and give it magical powers. Some symbols meant that the warrior expresses respect for the gods or is blessed to win. This knowledge was passed down from generation to generation until the culture was destroyed during the wars of conquest.

Just as modern soldiers receive awards for their achievements in military affairs, the Indian had the right to apply a certain pattern only after he distinguished himself in battle. Therefore, each mark and symbol on the body carried an important meaning. The palm, for example, denoted that the Indian distinguished himself in hand-to-hand combat and had good combat skills. In addition, the palm print could serve as a talisman symbolizing that the Indian would be invisible on the battlefield. In turn, a woman from the tribe, who saw an Indian warrior with a handprint, understood that nothing threatened her with such a man. The symbolism of the patterns went far beyond just ritual actions and social markings, it was needed as an amulet, as a bodily placebo that instills strength and courage in a warrior.

It was not only the graphic markers that were important, but also the color base of each symbol. The symbols inscribed with red paint denoted blood, strength, energy and success in battle, but they could also have quite peaceful connotations - beauty and happiness - if they painted faces with similar colors.

Black meant readiness for war, strength, but carried more aggressive energy. Those soldiers who returned home after a victorious battle were marked in black. The ancient Romans did the same, returning to Rome on horseback after victory, but they painted their faces bright red, imitating their god of war, Mars. White meant sorrow, although there was another meaning - peace. In blue or green colors, patterns were applied to the most intellectually developed and spiritually enlightened members of the tribe. These colors signified wisdom and endurance. Green has been closely associated with harmony and the power of providence.

Later, the Indians began to use the coloring not only for intimidation, but also as camouflage - they selected the colors of the coloring in accordance with the conditions. Flowers were used to "heal", protect, prepare for a "new life", express the inner state and social status, and, of course, paint the face and body was applied as decorative elements.

The modern interpretation of the war paint is purely practical. The military applies black coloring to the face under the eyes and on the cheeks to reduce the reflection of sunlight from the surface of the skin, which is not protected by camouflage fabric.

Coloring rules

When we look at an image, the brain processes a tremendous amount of information from the eyes and other senses. In order for consciousness to extract some meaning from what it sees, the brain divides the overall picture into its component parts. When the eye looks at a vertical line with green spots, the brain receives a signal and identifies it as a tree, and when the brain perceives many, many trees, it sees them as a forest.

Consciousness tends to recognize something as an independent object only if this object has a continuous color. It turns out that a person has a much higher chance of being noticed if his suit is absolutely monochromatic. In a jungle environment, a large number of colors in a camouflage pattern will be perceived as a coherent object, because the jungle is literally made up of small details.

Exposed skin reflects light and attracts attention. Usually, in order to paint the paint correctly, the soldiers help each other before starting the operation. The shiny parts of the body - the forehead, cheekbones, nose, ears and chin - are painted in dark colors, and the shadow (or darkened) areas of the face - around the eyes, under the nose and under the chin - in light green shades. In addition to the face, the coloring is also applied to open parts of the body: the back of the neck, arms and hands.

The two-tone camouflage skin is often randomly applied. The palms of the hands are usually not masked, but if in military operations the hands are used as a communication tool, that is, they serve to transmit non-verbal tactical signals, they are also masked. In practice, three standard types of face paint are most commonly used: loam (clay color), light green, applicable to all types of ground forces in areas where there is not enough green vegetation, and clay white for troops in snowy terrain.

In the development of protective paints, two main criteria are taken into account: the protection and safety of the soldier. The safety criterion means simplicity and ease of use: when the paint is applied by a soldier to exposed parts of the body, it must remain resistant to environmental conditions, resistant to perspiration and suitable for uniforms. Face painting does not reduce the soldier's natural sensitivity, has virtually no odor, does not irritate the skin, and is not harmful if the paint accidentally gets into the eyes or mouth.

Modern methods

Currently, there is a prototype paint that protects the soldier's skin from the heat wave in an explosion. What I mean: in reality, the heat wave from the explosion lasts no more than two seconds, its temperature is 600 ° C, but this time is enough to completely burn the face and severely damage the unprotected limbs. As stated, the new material is able to protect exposed skin from minor burns for 15 seconds after the explosion.

There are designs for face paint that reflect infrared rays and protect soldiers from mosquitoes and other insects. Usually the soldier would first apply a protective layer of insect cream to protect exposed skin from bites, and after the cream was absorbed into the skin, a protective face paint was applied. Today there are developments in which these two functions fit in one bottle.

Digital security CV (Computer Vision, or facial recognition system) is being developed in military institutions, but there is also a civilian version called CV Dazzle. It is based on the World War I Dazzle naval camouflage - black and white lines are applied to the skin of the face, which prevents the computer system from recognizing the face. The project started in 2010 and is aimed at digital protection of a person from city cameras, which are becoming more and more from year to year.

Along with the development of language as a communication tool, non-verbal communication methods developed. Before learning to speak coherently, a person used the limbs of the hands and facial expressions for communication, unconsciously learning to put so much meaning into each arc and straight line on the face that all this was enough to be perfectly understood by the interlocutor. Going to war or hunting, he applied a symmetrical ornament on his face, emphasizing intentions, and with the help of mimic muscles, the coloring came to life and began to work according to specific rules.

In this article, we tried to raise the main milestones in the history of war paint, find out how it is used today, and also compose a short instruction on how to apply.

The history of the appearance of war paint

It is known that war paint was used by the ancient Celts, who used indigo blue for this, obtained from dyeing woad. The Celts applied the resulting solution to the naked body or painted its bare parts. Although it is impossible to say with complete certainty that the Celts were the first to come up with the idea of ​​applying war paint on the face - the woad was used back in the Neolithic era.

New Zealand Maori applied permanent symmetrical patterns to the skin of the face and body, which were called "ta-moko". Such a tattoo was extremely important in Maori culture; by “ta-moko” one could read the social status of a person, but, in addition, it was an attempt to make “permanent camouflage” and at the same time create a prototype of a military uniform. In 1642, Abel Tasman first reached the shores of New Zealand and met face to face with the locals. In the diaries that have survived from that time, there is not a word about the fact that he met people with tattoos on their faces. And the expedition of 1769, which included the naturalist Joseph Banks, witnessed in their observations strange and unusual tattoos on the faces of local aborigines. That is, at least another hundred years passed before the Maori began to use tattoos.

Vaida dyeing

North American Indians used dyes to apply designs to leather, which helped them, as in the case of the Maori, to personalize. The Indians believed that the patterns would help them gain magical protection in battle, and the colored patterns on the faces of the fighters helped them look more ferocious and dangerous.

In addition to painting their own bodies, the Indians applied patterns on their horses; it was believed that a certain pattern on the horse's body would protect it and give it magical powers. Some symbols meant that the warrior expresses respect for the gods or is blessed to win. This knowledge was passed down from generation to generation until the culture was destroyed during the wars of conquest.

Just as modern soldiers receive awards for their achievements in military affairs, the Indian had the right to apply a certain pattern only after he distinguished himself in battle. Therefore, each mark and symbol on the body carried an important meaning. The palm, for example, denoted that the Indian distinguished himself in hand-to-hand combat and had good combat skills. In addition, the palm print could serve as a talisman symbolizing that the Indian would be invisible on the battlefield. In turn, a woman from the tribe, who saw an Indian warrior with a handprint, understood that nothing threatened her with such a man. The symbolism of the patterns went far beyond just ritual actions and social markings, it was needed as an amulet, as a bodily placebo that instills strength and courage in a warrior.

It was not only the graphic markers that were important, but also the color base of each symbol. The symbols inscribed with red paint denoted blood, strength, energy and success in battle, but they could also have quite peaceful connotations - beauty and happiness - if they painted faces with similar colors.

Black meant readiness for war, strength, but carried more aggressive energy. Those soldiers who returned home after a victorious battle were marked in black. The ancient Romans did the same, returning to Rome on horseback after victory, but they painted their faces bright red, imitating their god of war, Mars. White meant sorrow, although there was another meaning - peace. In blue or green colors, patterns were applied to the most intellectually developed and spiritually enlightened members of the tribe. These colors signified wisdom and endurance. Green has been closely associated with harmony and the power of providence.

Later, the Indians began to use the coloring not only for intimidation, but also as camouflage - they selected the colors of the coloring in accordance with the conditions. Flowers were used to "heal", protect, prepare for a "new life", express the inner state and social status, and, of course, paint the face and body was applied as decorative elements.

The modern interpretation of the war paint is purely practical. The military applies black coloring to the face under the eyes and on the cheeks to reduce the reflection of sunlight from the surface of the skin, which is not protected by camouflage fabric.

Those soldiers who returned home after a victorious battle were marked in black.

Coloring rules

When we look at an image, the brain processes a tremendous amount of information from the eyes and other senses. In order for consciousness to extract some meaning from what it sees, the brain divides the overall picture into its component parts. When the eye looks at a vertical line with green spots, the brain receives a signal and identifies it as a tree, and when the brain perceives many, many trees, it sees them as a forest.

Consciousness tends to recognize something as an independent object only if this object has a continuous color. It turns out that a person has a much higher chance of being noticed if his suit is absolutely monochromatic. In a jungle environment, a large number of colors in a camouflage pattern will be perceived as a coherent object, because the jungle is literally made up of small details.

Exposed skin reflects light and attracts attention. Usually, in order to paint the paint correctly, the soldiers help each other before starting the operation. The shiny parts of the body - the forehead, cheekbones, nose, ears and chin - are painted in dark colors, and the shadow (or darkened) areas of the face - around the eyes, under the nose and under the chin - in light green shades. In addition to the face, the coloring is also applied to open parts of the body: the back of the neck, arms and hands.

The two-tone camouflage skin is often randomly applied. The palms of the hands are usually not masked, but if in military operations the hands are used as a communication tool, that is, they serve to transmit non-verbal tactical signals, they are also masked. In practice, three standard types of face paint are most commonly used: loam (clay color), light green, applicable to all types of ground forces in areas where there is not enough green vegetation, and clay white for troops in snowy terrain.

In the development of protective paints, two main criteria are taken into account: the protection and safety of the soldier. The safety criterion means simplicity and ease of use: when the paint is applied by a soldier to exposed parts of the body, it must remain resistant to environmental conditions, resistant to perspiration and suitable for uniforms. Face painting does not reduce the soldier's natural sensitivity, has virtually no odor, does not irritate the skin, and is not harmful if the paint accidentally gets into the eyes or mouth.

Exposed skin reflects light and attracts attention

Modern methods

Currently, there is a prototype paint that protects the soldier's skin from the heat wave in an explosion. What I mean: in reality, the heat wave from the explosion lasts no more than two seconds, its temperature is 600 ° C, but this time is enough to completely burn the face and severely damage the unprotected limbs. As stated, the new material is able to protect exposed skin from minor burns for 15 seconds after the explosion.

In this article we will try to raise the main milestones in history. war paint, learn how it is used today, as well as study the short instructions on how to apply it.

The history of the appearance of war paint

It is known that war paint was used by the ancient Celts, who used indigo blue, obtained from the weida dye plant, for this. The Celts applied the resulting solution to the naked body or painted its bare parts. Although it is impossible to say with complete certainty that the Celts were the first to come up with the idea of ​​applying war paint on the face - the woad was used back in the Neolithic era.

New Zealand Maori applied permanent symmetrical patterns to the skin of the face and body, which were called "ta-moko". Such a tattoo was extremely important in Maori culture; by “ta-moko” one could read the social status of a person, but, in addition, it was an attempt to make “permanent camouflage” and at the same time create a prototype of a military uniform. In 1642, Abel Tasman first reached the shores of New Zealand and met face to face with the locals. In the diaries that have survived from that time, there is not a word about the fact that he met people with tattoos on their faces. And the expedition of 1769, which included the naturalist Joseph Banks, witnessed in their observations strange and unusual tattoos on the faces of local aborigines. That is, at least another hundred years passed before the Maori began to use tattoos.

North American Indians used dyes to apply designs to leather, which helped them, as in the case of the Maori, to personalize. The Indians believed that the patterns would help them gain magical protection in battle, and the colored patterns on the faces of the fighters helped them look more ferocious and dangerous.

In addition to painting their own bodies, the Indians applied patterns on their horses; it was believed that a certain pattern on the horse's body would protect it and give it magical powers. Some symbols meant that the warrior expresses respect for the gods or is blessed to win. This knowledge was passed down from generation to generation until the culture was destroyed during the wars of conquest.

Just as modern soldiers receive awards for their achievements in military affairs, the Indian had the right to apply a certain pattern only after he distinguished himself in battle. Therefore, each mark and symbol on the body carried an important meaning. The palm, for example, denoted that the Indian distinguished himself in hand-to-hand combat and had good combat skills. In addition, the palm print could serve as a talisman symbolizing that the Indian would be invisible on the battlefield. In turn, a woman from the tribe, who saw an Indian warrior with a handprint, understood that nothing threatened her with such a man. The symbolism of the patterns went far beyond just ritual actions and social markings, it was needed as an amulet, as a bodily placebo that instills strength and courage in a warrior.

It was not only the graphic markers that were important, but also the color base of each symbol. The symbols inscribed with red paint denoted blood, strength, energy and success in battle, but they could also have quite peaceful connotations - beauty and happiness - if they painted faces with similar colors. Black meant readiness for war, strength, but carried more aggressive energy. Those soldiers who returned home after a victorious battle were marked in black. The ancient Romans did the same, returning to Rome on horseback after victory, but they painted their faces bright red, imitating their god of war, Mars. White meant sorrow, although there was another meaning - peace. In blue or green colors, patterns were applied to the most intellectually developed and spiritually enlightened members of the tribe. These colors signified wisdom and endurance. Green has been closely associated with harmony and the power of providence.

Later, the Indians began to use the coloring not only for intimidation, but also as camouflage - they selected the colors of the coloring in accordance with the conditions. Flowers were used to "heal", protect, prepare for a "new life", express the inner state and social status, and, of course, paint the face and body was applied as decorative elements.

The modern interpretation of the war paint is purely practical. The military applies a dark color to the face under the eyes and on the cheeks to reduce the reflection of sunlight from the surface of the skin, which is not protected by camouflage fabric.

When we look at an image, the brain processes a tremendous amount of information from the eyes and other senses. In order for consciousness to extract some meaning from what it sees, the brain divides the overall picture into its component parts. When the eye looks at a vertical line with green spots, the brain receives a signal and identifies it as a tree, and when the brain perceives many, many trees, it sees them as a forest.

Consciousness tends to recognize something as an independent object only if this object has a continuous color. It turns out that a person has a much higher chance of being noticed if his suit is absolutely monochromatic. In a jungle environment, a large number of colors in a camouflage pattern will be perceived as a coherent object, because the jungle is literally made up of small details.

Exposed skin reflects light and attracts attention. Usually, in order to paint the paint correctly, the soldiers help each other before starting the operation.

The shiny parts of the body - the forehead, cheekbones, nose, ears and chin - are painted in dark colors, and the shadow (or darkened) areas of the face - around the eyes, under the nose and under the chin - in light green shades. In addition to the face, the coloring is also applied to open parts of the body: the back of the neck, arms and hands.

The two-tone camouflage skin is often randomly applied. The palms of the hands are usually not masked, but if in military operations the hands are used as a communication tool, that is, they are used to transmit non-verbal tactical signals, they are also masked.

In practice, three standard types of face paint are most often used: loam (clay color), light green, applicable to all types of ground forces in areas where there is not enough green vegetation, and clay white for troops in snowy terrain.

In the development of protective paints, two main criteria are taken into account: the protection and safety of the soldier. The safety criterion means simplicity and ease of use: when the paint is applied by a soldier to exposed parts of the body, it must remain resistant to environmental conditions, resistant to perspiration and suitable for uniforms. Face painting does not reduce the soldier's natural sensitivity, has virtually no odor, does not irritate the skin, and is not harmful if the paint accidentally gets into the eyes or mouth.

Modern tendencies

Currently, there is a prototype paint that protects the soldier's skin from the heat wave in an explosion. What I mean: in reality, the heat wave from the explosion lasts no more than two seconds, its temperature is 600 ° C, but this time is enough to completely burn the face and severely damage the unprotected limbs. As stated, the new material is able to protect exposed skin from minor burns for 15 seconds after the explosion.