The use of dress throughout the tapestry, especially
as regards the main characters, is a means of distinguishing them from their
subordinates. The short cloak, fastened at the neck or shoulder by a circular
or square brooch and the knee-length tunic, is the most common garment used
to denote rank. The tunic, likened to the 'tabard', did not appear to open down
the front and was probably put on over the head like a smock. Decoration is
not seen about the neckline of the garment, however, they are occasionally shown
with an embroidered lower hem.
The dress of all classes at this period was distinguished by the ornaments and
richness, not the form of their apparel; except perhaps upon state occasions,
when the nobler classes wore the tunic longer and the cloak more ample. The
same articles of dress appear to have been common to Anglo-Saxons of all walks
of life.
History of clothing
and textiles
English medieval clothing
Early medieval European
dress
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