| Gael Agus Gall... kit guidelines
These kit guidelines are intended to replace
any previous guidelines or kit specifications we
may have been following for Gaelic clothing styles.
Copyright:
John Nicholl 1999
Introduction
Over the last two years our focus as a
group has concentrated more and more on 10th century
life and crafts. It is also fair to say that we
have specialised in Hiberno Viking rather than Gaelic.
This has probably been due to the huge amount of
material becoming available for the Hiberno Viking
period in Irish history and the relative scarcity
of sources for Irish kit. The bulk of our displays
are rooted in the reports of Hiberno Viking urban
settlement digs. To date there has been no report
published on a rural Viking settlement. One was
located at Brown's Barn near Tallaght during the
laying of the Kinsale gas pipeline several years
ago but no details are available. There are references
in the Annals to Viking settlements such as Dun
Amhlaimh ( Olaf ) at Clondalkin which was burnt
in 867 AD, with "100 Norse heads impaled on spears"
and isolated burials such as the one found near
Barnhall in Leixlip in 1788 which might suggest
that a settlement was located nearby.
As to how the Irish who also lived in
the area might have dressed we have to turn to various
illustrated sources for our information. The principal
sources for these guidelines are:
1. Cross of the Scriptures at Clonmacnoise
2. Cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice
( 923 AD. )
3. Cross of Durrow
4. Cross of Kells
5. Book of Kells ( 8th century )
6. Shrine of St. Moedoc ( 11th century
)
7. Giraldus Cambrensis ( 1183 - 1185 ) and other
various texts, annals and reports for references
to colour and textiles.
8. Durer's drawings in the 16th century of Irish
poor men and soldiers.
If we take the Book of Kells as a start
point and Durer as an end point, it is a fair conclusion
to say that there was a continuity of dress style
over several centuries with a gradual process of
change from the Hiberno Viking period onwards. Gaelic
society during our period seems to have been quite
stratified and governed by rules. Clothing was important
as a sign of rank and wealth and was even regulated
by rules as in 'Leabhar na gCeart' The Book of Rights.
Book of Kells ( 8th Century )
Beginning with the Book of Kells there appears to
have been two distinct dress styles in use which
are replicated on each of the succeeding sources
and may have indicated a class structure or a division
of labour. The commonest style shown is the Leine
and Brat. This type of dress along with its distinctive
fastening mechanism, the pennanular brooch, seems
to have been introduced into Ireland in the late
4th and early 5th centuries by settlers from Romano
Britain. The pennanular brooch itself is a Romano
British invention of the 4th century ( if not earlier
) and the leine and brat are quite obviously derived
from the Roman dress styles. It should also be borne
in mind that this was a dress style which was probably
associated with the aristocracy or high status members
of Irish society at the time. That it should have
lasted for such a long time is perhaps a testimony
to the impact it made on peoples' social consciousness
as much as its associations with the founders of
Gaelic ( Goedilic ) society as described in the
Gaelic saga sources. Virtually all of the illustrations
are of Christ, the Virgin and various saints and
may be an indication of a high status dress style.
However, there is one illustration of a woman with
a goat which is obviously intended as a negative
comment. She is depicted wearing Leine and Brat
but no headcovering. The wearing of a headcovering
or caille was a requirement of Brehon Law. It could
be concluded that the leine and brat were not confined
to high status but were in more general use with
her lack of head covering indicating her lower status.
All of the illustrations agree on the
following details:
Leine: This was a garment worn by both men
and women and was made of linen. For women it reached
to the feet and for men to about ankle length. It
was either made from bleached white linen or else
a single bright colour which was described as 'gel'.
It is possible that the white was reserved for ecclesiastical
clothing with the bright colours or plain linen
being preferred by everyone else. The Book of Kells
shows leines of various colours e.g. red, green
and blue. The sleeves were wide or loose at the
shoulder and tapered to a tight fit at the cuffs.
There are no illustrations of wide loose sleeves
at the wrist so it is a case of snips, needle and
thread for any wide sleeves. The 8th century illustrations
show the leine as a loose fitting, single coloured
garment decorated at cuffs, neck and hem with bands
of braid or embroidery. There is no pictorial evidence
for two or multi coloured leini. The neck opening
was usually circular with an occasional v shape
being used. The plates of the Shrine of St Moedoc
could possibly represent pleated leine as the folds
seem too regularly defined for a representation
of normal folds in cloth. As the shrine is 11th
century it could possibly indicate a fashion or
style change influenced by the Scandinavian pleated
kyrtle. The leine was secured about the waist with
a crois or belt. This was made of either tablet
woven wool or leather and would also serve for hanging
a pouch, knife or other articles. In warm weather
or when engaged in work or fighting the leine would
be 'pouched ' over the crois to allow greater mobility.
The depiction of Cain and Able on the Cross of Muiredach
at Monasterboice shows the leine being worn in this
manner. Likewise a warrior depicted on the Cross
of Scriptures wears his leine gathered. It should
not be confused with a kilt for which there is no
evidence.
Brat: ( Cloak ) Again the brat
was worn by both men and women and the pictorial
evidence is quite consistent. All show the brat
worn around the shoulders. It was secured with a
pennanular brooch on the right shoulder for men
and below the chin for women. There are no illustrations
showing the brat being worn across the body as in
'Braveheart' or in the style favoured by some Welsh
groups. The length of the brat was a symbol of wealth
and status although by our period it seemed to have
been a standard length roughly equivalent to the
wearer's height. There is no clear evidence for
a hood attached to the brat although some illustrations
show the brat worn covering the head and secured
as usual with a brooch. If the brat was at least
the same length as the wearer's height it would
be possible to form a hood and still secure it with
a brooch. The brat was usually rectangular in shape,
of a single colour with a contrasting border. It
could be lined with a contrasting colour which wrapped
around to form the border. Another decorative device
was the addition of a tablet woven fringe or braid,
again of a contrasting colour. There is no evidence
that the fringe was an integral part of the brat
itself. In Henken's Lagore Report he illustrates
a method for tablet weaving a fringed braid. When
making a brat it would be best to cut a large piece
of cloth into narrower strips of material which
are then sown together to simulate the cloth production
of the period. Strips could vary between 24" and
36".
Mantle: ( Fallaing ) The mantle
is closely related to the brat but differs in some
major ways. It was made of wool but unlike the Brat,
it appears to have had a hood and to have been somewhat
shorter in length and more close fitting. Illustrations
show what could have been a mantle as falling to
waist length or to just below the knee. It seems
to have been closed down the front to about waist
level and to have been put on over the head of the
wearer as it is not shown with any brooches for
fastening. There were two openings down either side
to allow arm movement. The mantle was also decorated
with braid around the hem.
Ionar or Tunic: The ionar could
vary in length and was again worn by both men and
women. It was a woolen, sleeved garment which was
put on over the head. The sleeves, which seemed
to vary in length from elbow to wrist were fairly
close fitting but not as tight as those of the leine.
Decoration seemed to have been confined to hem,
cuffs and neck opening and to have consisted of
bands of braid. The Shrine of St. Moedoc shows three
women wearing short ionar over a leine. Illustrations
of male figures from the same shrine also show layers
of garments being worn under a brat. A second distinct
style of dress consisted of an inar and truis (
jacket and trews ). It seems to have been worn by
soldiers and is depicted in the Book of Kells as
well as on the High Crosses.
Inar: (Jacket) The inar was a close
fitting woolen jacket which reached to the waist
and was secured across the chest with a brooch,
probably kite shaped. It could have long close-fitting
sleeves or else be completely sleeveless. It was
generally decorated at the cuffs, hem and neck opening.
It seems to have been worn in combination with truis.
These varied in style. Illustrations in the Book
of Kells and on the Cross of Muiredach show soldiers
wearing short truis which reached to just above
or just below the knee. Those illustrated in the
Book of Kells are of a single colour, tight fitting
and end below the knee while those shown on the
cross panel are loose fitting, striped and gathered
just above the knee. The difference could be explained
as an evolution of style and fashion. Also illustrated
in the Book of Kells are long tight-fitting truis
which are secured by loops under the foot. This
dress combination does not seem to have been worn
with a brat but with a shorter cloak. There is a
reference to this style of 'Irish dress' in the
'Heimskringla'. The soldiers are shown armed with
spear, shield and sword.
Shoes: The early manuscript illustrations
show a distinctly Gaelic shoe style of which there
are currently two examples on display in the National
Museum. These shoes are of one piece construction
and heavily decorated. They are associated with
finds from the earlier levels of Crannogs. They
are well described in Lucas ( 1936 ). However, they
would appear to have gone out of fashion by the
10th century and to have been replaced by the more
common 'slipper type' and 'short ankle boot' type.
Numerous examples of these shoe types have been
found in the urban digs and are also on display
. It is fair to assume that they would have found
their way into the hinterland. There is absolutely
no evidence from Irish digs for the wearing of heels
or nail studded soles during in the 10th century.
Such additions are a modern convenience but totally
inaccurate. Heels, as such, did not make their appearance
until the 14th century although hob nails had been
a feature of Roman footwear. Unfortunately, 10th
century towns and roads had no metalled or concrete
surfaces so heels and hobnails were not a necessity.
It is estimated that the average 10th century shoe
would last for about 2 months before repairs were
necessary. Two months continuous wear would translate
into several seasons for us. The Book of Kells illustrations
show soldiers barefoot although all the later images
show soldiers wearing shoes. It was frowned on to
go barefoot in Irish society so that shoes also
became a symbol of rank. Shoes could be rougher
and simpler for the lower grades of society and
more refined and decorated for high status.
Colour: The most commonly used
dyes of the period were madder ( reds, pinks, rusts
etc. ) weld ( yellows ) and woad ( blue ). There
have been many textile finds from around Ireland
showing traces of these dyes. While some of the
textiles have been of a single colour, others have
been found which have combined bands or squares
of contrasting colour in the weave. (There is no
evidence for tartan). We know that the Vikings imported
large quantities of highly coloured cloth of wool,
linen and silk to augment the home produced material.
The most common colours found in Dublin have been
reds and purples. We also know from annalistic accounts
that the Irish deliberately raided Dublin and Limerick
for their cloth supplies.
Brooches: The only type of brooch
shown in use with the brat is the Pennanular type.
It is shown being worn by both men and women. The
only difference seems to have been in the positioning
of the brooch, with women wearing it below the chin
to fasten the brat across the body and men wearing
it on the right shoulder and so throwing the brat
slightly to one side. As already mentioned, the
brooches are derived from the original Romano British
designs of the 4th century AD. and have been found
in many locations across Ireland. The brooch should
be worn with the pin facing upwards. By law, a person
could be held liable for any injury caused by their
brooch.
Hair Styles: There are several
different hair styles depicted some of which seem
to have been peculiar to certain occupations. Soldiers,
for instance, are shown with long and short hair
styles. They would also appear to have worn a heavy
moustache with or without a beard. The high status
men avoided the moustache in favour of a beard or
else were clean shaven. Razors, similar to the 'cut
throat' variety have been found at Dublin. There
were also rules governing how short hair could be.
It was considered indecent to have more than a handsbreath
between the top of the ear and the hairline. The
illustrations of women show hair being worn long,
sometimes braided, but always clearly visible. There
does not seem to have been any attempt to keep hair
out of sight.
Review of evidence from High Cross
panels
Perhaps the best pictorial sources we have are the
beautifully carved high cross panels. In particular,
the crosses at Kells, Clonmacnoise, Monasterboice
and Durrow merit close attention. These crosses
have lost the more naive and stylised representations
of earlier crosses and their figures are carved
more realistically and with greater attention to
detail. Some of the illustrations are still remarkably
clear despite decades of weathering. I feel there
is no reason to doubt the clothing styles illustrated
as being representative of the dress styles of our
period. There is a great consistency across all
the panels and while scholars might debate the meaning
of the religious iconography there is little room
for division concerning the actual garments illustrated.
We may tend to forget that we have a privileged
view of the dress of earlier centuries thanks to
Art and Archaeology neither of which were available
to the stonemasons who carved the Crosses. In order
to dress their portraits they had no other guidance
than the dress styles of those about them. It should
be a fairly safe conclusion that high status dress
styles were used for Christ and Saints with more
common dress styles for soldiers and workers.
Dating
Of the four sites, the Crosses at Kells (4 in all
) can date no earlier than the foundation of the
monastery by the refugee monks of Iona circa 810
AD. They were not all built at the same time and
it is safe to assume that they represent work spread
over several years, if not decades, as the monastery
grew in size and importance. Likewise, the Crosses
at the other three sites can be accurately dated
to the first quarter of the 10th century from annalistic
references to the abbots of the monasteries when
the Crosses were erected.
Summary of Gaelic Kit Requirements
PLEASE REMEMBER THAT WEALTH DICTATED DRESS STYLES
AS WELL AS FABRICS AND COLOURS
FEMALE.
Leine Mna : ankle length linen dress decorated
at cuffs, hem and neck, close fitting sleeves, one
colour.
Ionar Mna : over dress or tunic, woolen, shorter
than leine.
Brat : rectangular cloak made of wool, single colour
usually fringed and decorated with embroidery at
hems. At least same length as the wearer's height.
Keep embroidery patterns simple for lower ranking
individuals.
Caille : veil or headcovering. This would appear
to have been a fashion item worn by most women.
Could be of fine linen or silk. Young girls would
probably not have worn veils as a rule.
Crois : Belt of woolen tablet weaving or leather.
Mala : Pouch or small bag worn on the crois.
Broga : Shoes of leather or hide, derived from the
Old Norse word "Brok".
Pennanular Brooch
Accessories to include drop spindle, small knife
in a truaill (scabbard), wool snips.
MALE.
Leine Fir : Long linen tunic as for female
Ionar Fir : Tunic made of wool
Brat : Rectangular woolen cloak, decorated with
embroidery or tablet woven fringe. Length approximately
same as the wearer's height.
For soldiers and lower ranking civilians: As above
but also: Trius : Knee length trousers, could be
striped
Osain : Tight trousers similar to hose, with a stirrup
under the foot.
Inar : Jacket which was short and could be sleeveless
or short sleeved.
Short cloak : Should only reach to below the waist.
Full length brat should not be combined with jacket
and trews.
Broga : Leather shoes, usual 10th century patterns,
but no added heels or hob nails. Either one piece
or else sole and upper.
Brat : Long cloak, about same length as wearer's
height, keep decoration simple, tablet woven fringe
of a contrasting colour can be added
Leine Fir : Which seems to have been worn gathered
about the waist when working or fighting.
Crois : Belt, usually of leather but could be of
woven wool.
Accessories to include: Knife in a truaill, leather
pouch. Leather shoes of some form are an obligatory
requirement for all Gaelic members as to go barefoot
was frowned upon in Gaelic Society of our time frame.
WEAPONS
Where possible, modern Irish spelling applies. This
list is compiled from an article in The Irish
Sword on "Native Irish Arms and Armour".
Knife : Scian
Mailcoat : Luireach
Helmet : Clogas or Cathbarr.
Spear : Sleagh, but the words, Ga, or Gaoi could
also be used.
Shield : Scath
Darts : Birin
Sword : Claiomh, usually traded or taken from Vikings.
(Very expensive).
Multiple layers of waxed linen shirts are referred
to as a form of armour also leather coats
Battle Dress : Erred
Norse Lance : Manais Lochlannach
Arrow : Saighead
Bow : Boagha
Quiver : Bolgan Saighead
Axe : Tua
Sling : Boagha Cloch
(Images of some of the crosses
will be uploaded soon)
Description of sources
Monasterboice: West Cross Centre Panel: Scenes of
the Passion: This panel consists of two soldiers
with a central Christ figure. Costume detail on
the soldiers is not clear. However, the soldier
on the right seems to have a conically shaped head
suggestive of a helmet. On the left arm of the cross,
the scene would appear to depict the Crowning with
Thorns. The soldier on the left of the group is
more clearly delimited. There is no evidence for
a cloak or mantle on the upper body. His tunic is
gathered at the waist by a belt, leaving his legs
free. The soldier on the right would appear to be
wearing a close fitting jacket and trousers. Both
figures are wearing helmets. On the right arm of
the cross the scene appears the portray Judas kissing
Christ. There are three figures in this panel. The
figure on the right is depicted wearing a cloak
over a tunic which seems to be gathered at the waist.
There is no clear detail on the central figure.
The figure to the left of the group is depicted
carrying a round shield and sword. On the bottom
panel below the central boss there are two further
soldier figures. Both would appear to be wearing
helmets, close fitting jackets and short trousers
gathered at the knee. Any fine detail has weathered
away. The detail is quite good on the central panel
figure of Christ. He is depicted wearing a highly
ornate, close fitting costume consisting of a short
waist length mantle with openings for the arms.
Beneath this, a tight fitting garment reaches to
the ankles with decoration at the hem.
Monasterboice: Cross of Muiredach 927
AD. The panel depicting the Arrest of Christ consists
of three figures. A central figure of Christ flanked
on either side by two soldiers. The detail here
is really very good. The figure on the right, a
soldier, is depicted wearing a tight fitting, sleeveless
upper garment. There is just enough detail to suggest
the possibility of mail. Across his chest he would
appear to be wearing a kite shaped brooch, perhaps
as a fastening device. This particular garment extends
below the waist and ends at mid thigh. This garment
is secured tightly about the waist with a belt.
Below this can be clearly seen a representation
of short trousers. They are fairly close fitting
and reach to just above the knee. There is just
a hint of detail to suggest circular links arranged
in rows. Each hem line is clearly defined. It is
unclear whether the rest of the leg is bare or whether
shoes are worn. The soldier is armed with a double
edged sword and would seem to wear a moustache but
no beard. His companion on the left of the panel
is also armed with a sword. The body detail on this
figure is not as clear but his costume would appear
to be similar. The short trousers are clearly defined
but other detail is lost. The left leg of the trousers
would appear to show a vertical stripe. This figure
also favours the moustache and no beard. The third
central figure depicting Christ wears a highly decorated
costume which seems to consist of; a) a mantle,
with arm openings, secured on the right shoulder
with a pennanular brooch. b) a long ankle length
leine decorated with embroidery. The embroidery
motifs seem to be circular s shapes. There is also
a possible third garment reaching to the figures
waist and represented by inverted v shaped double
lines. This parallels some of the detail on the
Christ figure on the West Cross where the embroidered
motifs are more clearly visible as the mantle is
raised by the outstretched arms.
Cross of Muiredach: Murder of Able: The
two figures in this panel are depicted in contrasting
dress styles. Cain, on the left, has the long hair
and moustache of a soldier. However, he appears
to be wearing a leine which is gathered at the waist
and folded over a belt. It falls to just about knee
length and has clearly defined hem decoration. He
would also seem to be wearing a short jacket over
this leine. Able has less clearly defined upper
body detail but is obviously wearing a leine which
has been pouched over a belt. This leine has a broad
band of embroidery at the hem. He is also depicted
as being barefoot.
Cross of Scriptures: Clonmacnoise: The
first panel from the east side of the cross shaft
would appear to depict a chieftain swearing an oath.
The costume details are quite clear. He is not wearing
the short trousers of the other military figures.
Instead he wears a leine which is pouched at the
waist over a belt. The hem embroidery detail is
clearly visible also. He wears a sword in a scabbard
and the baldric strap is visible under his left
arm. There is possible detail to suggest a short
sleeved jacket. He also wears a moustache and long
hair and would appear to be barefoot. The other
figure in the panel is depicted as being of higher
rank. He holds a ceremonial staff and the placing
of his hands ( above those of the other figure )
suggest that it belongs to him. He is dressed in
a long Leine which falls to his ankles and has an
elaborate embroidered hem. Over the leine he wears
a short cloak which is open at the front through
which his arms emerge. This is clearly not a mantle
with arm openings. The cloak has a well defined
hem and would appear to be embroidered. It also
seems to be gathered on the shoulders suggesting
it may actually be longer than it is being worn.
The foot detail clearly shows him to be wearing
shoes.
Cross of Scriptures: Two Kings: Both figures
are similarly and richly dressed. Both have long
hair and plaited beards. They are wearing long leines
which fall to just above the ankles. The hems are
embroidered and there is a suggestion of lateral
zigzag embroidery parallel to each hem. Each figure
wears a long cloak over the leine and has it secured
on the right shoulder with a pennanular brooch.
Each man wears a sword in a scabbard. The scabbard
worn by the figure on the left would seem to show
a mount half way along its length. It is not clear
whether the scabbards are worn over the shoulder
or hang from a belt. Some detail about the feet
might suggest that shoes are being worn.
Soldiers Guarding the Tomb: There is very
little clear detail on this panel. However, both
guards are shown wearing helmets and armed with
spears.
High Cross of Durrow ( Co. Offaly ) Soldiers
Guarding the Tomb: This is a very similar panel
to the previous one but the detail is better. Again,
both figures wear helmets and are armed with broad
leaf headed spears. It is also possible that these
spears are winged. The figure on the right seems
to be wearing a short sleeved jacket which reaches
to waist height. He wears a belt over this. Lower
body detail seems to suggest short trousers.
Flight into Egypt: In this panel Mary
is depicted carrying the infant on her back or possibly
tucked under her cloak. The detail is faint but
enough remains to show that she is wearing a leine
which reaches to her ankles with a wide embroidered
hem. Over this she wears a cloak which is secured
at the front by a pennanular brooch and at the waist
by a belt. She also seems to have her hair plaited.
Detail on the Joseph figure is very faint but seems
to show that he has his leine gathered at the waist
with a belt.
Sacrifice of Abraham: There is very little
costume detail but a sword and axe are clearly visible.
Kells: Market Cross: The carvings on the
base of this cross show two horsemen carrying large
round shields and armed with swords. Unfortunately,
no other details are visible.
Castledermot: Cattle Raid(?): Depicts
two figures herding a mixed flock of animals. One
figure is armed with a sword while the other carries
a shield on his back and a broad headed spear in
his hand.
References: Allen, J.R. (1887)
The High Crosses of Ireland reprinted 1992
by Llanerch Publishers, Felinfach. Dunleavy, M.
Dress in Ireland , Batsford, London. Heckett,
E.W. (1993) in Textilsymposium Neumunster,
NESAT V pp 148 - 156 Medieval Textiles from Waterford
City, London Heckett, E. ( 1987) in NESAT 3
Textiles in Northern Archaeology, pp 85 -95
Some silk and wool headcoverings from Viking Dublin:
uses and origins - an inquiry, London. Hencken,
H. (1950 ) Proceedings of RIA, LIII, C,!. Lagore
Crannog: An Irish Royal residence ot the 7th to
10th Centuries A.D. Henry, F. ( 1964 ) Irish
High Crosses Lucas, A.T. (1956 ) The Journal
of The County Louth Archaeological Society,
XIII, 4. Footwear in Ireland McClintock,
H.G. Handbook of Old Irish Dress. McClintock,
H.G. (1943) Old Irish and Highland Dress and
the Isle of Man. Dundalk. O'Rourke, D. (1997
) Leather Artifacts in Late Viking Age and Medieval
Waterford, pp703 - 736, Waterford. Ryan, M.
et al ( 1994 ) Irish Archaeology Illustrated
, Dublin Walsh, A. ( 1922 ) Scandinavian Relations
with Ireland during the Viking Period. Talbot
Press, Dublin.
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