The present invention's stratified composite material system of armor, as
typically embodied, comprises a strike stratum and a backing stratum. The
strike stratum includes elastomeric matrix material and inventive
ceramic-inclusive elements embedded therein and arranged (e.g., in one or
more rows and one or more columns) along a geometric plane corresponding
to the front (initial strike) surface of the strike stratum. More rigid
than the strike stratum, the backing stratum is constituted by, e.g.,
metallic (metal or metal alloy) material or fiber-reinforced polymeric
matrix material. Some inventive embodiments also comprise a
spall-containment stratum fronting the strike stratum. The inventive
ceramic-inclusive elements geometrically describe any of various
inventive modes, including: first mode, having a flat front face and a
textured back face; second mode, having a pyramidal front section and a
prismatoidal (especially, prismoidal, e.g., truncated pyramidal or
prismatic) body section; hybrid mode, combining features of first and
second modes.