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I am not at all sure what it shows. This is partly why I ask if anyone else is "considering" the possibilities.

The small amount of surviving clothing (surcoat for combat often being called "sideless" in the upper body region) looks pretty different in the upper body region than much of what is shown in the Morgan and Maciejowski illuminated transcripts. I have not seen a surviving example with the side slits near legs that the illuminated manuscripts frequently depict when showing them in mounted context. The slits on the sides of those surcoat illustrations strike me as "inventions" to make them comfortable for mounted use. It is also a good possibility that there simply is no surviving example of the simple functional "cavalry style surcoat" from that era.

At least in Chauser's Prologue, he describes the knights' surcoat as; "a long surcoate that reached to his knees".... The story departure location where the prologue begins was the "Tabard Inn." It has left me thinking that a mixture of styles could generically have been called surcoats in military context.
Re: 13th century surcoat project
Jared Smith wrote:
Sander Marechal wrote:
This is supposed to be 1250-ish.


I am wondering if you considered the open sided "tabart" (11th century French for poor man's style overcoat) or "tabard" style. You can see the "3 musketeer" tabard style on priestly subjects in illuminated manuscripts back to early 12th century, identified with one of the kings (Alfred?) as early as 1115, and probably find academic discussion of how ornamented tabards and plain surcoats seem to have swapped social classes around this time. The tabbard was certainly common by 14th century (the assumed name in Chaucer's prologue to the collection that became known as Canterbury Tales.) An example from early 13th century (the closes the period had to a documentary about the crusade of that time) in actual combat shows what I consider to be a tabard, actually suited for mounted use and hotter environment as the hospitalers required.

folio 109


Hi Jared,

on a close look your posted miniature does look to me like a normal surcoat with a front slit and wide armholes. What you described as "Three-Musketeer-Look" seems to me like the knights curved shield (which he holds in his left hand) and the horses garments (which are clearly hanging down from the horses head and under the knights right leg). The right flap of the surcoat is drawn hanging a bit to the back, because horse and rider are speeding down this lane... Dunno if I got this right?

Thomas
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