OPTICAL LAYERED BODY, POLARIZER AND IMAGE DISPLAY DEVICE

The present invention provides an optical layered body which has a hard coat layer with a high hardness, which can sufficiently exert the properties owing to addition of a small amount of an antifouling agent and the like, and which leads to, in the case that an optically functional layer such as a low refractive index layer is laminated on the upper surface of the hard coat layer, excellent adhesion between the optically functional layer and the hard coat layer. The optical layered body comprises a light-transmitting substrate and a hard coat layer formed on the substrate. The hard coat layer contains reactive irregularly shaped silica fine particles and a binder resin. The reactive irregularly shaped silica fine particles are unevenly distributed at the side of the light-transmitting substrate in the hard coat layer. The hard coat layer is divided in its thickness direction into three equal regions, a region (1), a region (2), and a region (3) in the order from the interface on the side of the light-transmitting substrate. The reactive irregularly shaped silica fine particles in the region (1) exhibits a ratio of 30 to 90% in area; the reactive irregularly shaped silica fine particles in the region (2) exhibits a ratio of 25 to 80% in area; and the reactive irregularly shaped silica fine particles in the region (3) exhibits a ratio of 10 to 35% in ratio. The regions (1), (2), and (3) satisfy the following relationship: the ratio in area of the reactive irregularly shaped silica fine particles in the region (1)>= the ratio in area of the reactive irregularly shaped silica fine particles in the region (2)> the ratio in area of the reactive irregularly shaped silica fine particles in the region (3).