Kyrtles/Cotes/Tunics
Cowl of St.Francis of Assisi
After Flury -Lembergh
This is a Monk’s habit that once belonged to St.Francis of Assisi (d.1226). It is housed in Asssisi, in the church of S. Francesco. It is made of an undyed fulled woollen twil, ,and is partially lined in linen. The actual garment is missing the left sleeve. There is a linen pocket sewn into the remaining sleeve. Several large holes in the garment have been patched, ostensibly by fabric cut from a cloak belonging to St.Clare.
- Garment Material Length (to the shoulder):126.5 cm (”)
- Width at the top: 97 cm (”)
- Width at the Bottom: 167 cm (”)
Torso Material Thread Count
- Warp is 8 Z-spun threads/cm (21.6 threads per inch)
- Weft is 10 Z-spun theads/cm ( threads per inch)
Although this garment is identified as being a ”cowl”, it doesn’t fit the definition of a cowl according to the OED in that it has sleeves and no hood. It is closer to what was generally called a ”frock”.
This page was last modified 24 November 2002
Some Sources:
- Flury-Lemberg, Mechthild. Textile conservation and research : a documentation of the textile department on the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the Abegg Foundation. Bern : Abegg-Stiftung Bern, 1988.
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Some Clothing of the Middle Ages — Kyrtles/Cotes/Tunics — Cowl of St.Francis of Assisi, by I. Marc Carlson, Copyright 2002. This code is given for the free exchange of information, provided the Author’s Name is included in all future revisions, and no money change hands-