Cnemid

But at times it had been thought that they could have been variations on the cnemid, the bronze shin-protector worn by Greek warriors in combat.

The fresco battle painting from Pylos, Greece, shows warriors wearing cnemids for protection.

This helmet and the pair of greaves (shin guard), or cnemids, complementing it belong to the key elements of a panoply, the set of offensive and defensive arms that a Greek warrior would have used in combat.