A Viking tapestry of Thor, Odin and Frey
Excerpts from the Bayeux Tapestry.
This is one of the first things you will want to make. The only big difference between men’s and women’s tunics was their length, and the pattern below is suitable for many races and places. (Viking and Muslim women’s costumes were different, and should be considered separately.)
This page, by Marc Carlson, is perhaps the best resource on the Net for historically accurate patterns for clothing from archaeological finds.
If you take part in combat you will probably want at least two tunics: one for fighting and one for show. The tunic below is meant to be a loose fit and between thigh and knee-length for a man, and ankle or floor-length for a woman. Tunics should have braid at collar and cuffs.
This is only one of several possible patterns. Check the race or cultural group you intend to represent to get exactly the style you want. Look at pictures painted at the time, find out if other people have studied the society you’re interested in, to make sure you get your outfit as accurate as you can. By the way; as soon as possible you should be turning up to training in correct costume.
If you’re fighting you will need at least one pair for combat and men will need another for uniform. Jeans are not acceptable, but cotton slacks are, at least to start with. However, as soon as possible you should make a pair - the pattern below is accurate and easy to make. Fighting trousers need to be tough and not too expensive, as they’ll have to absorb a fair bit of rough treatment (rolling around on the ground, falling down dead etc.).
This is a very good pattern which was used in the Age of Migrations (4th-6th centuries AD) and is still in use in some parts of the world. They are primarily riding pants and may be made without feet if you wish.
X is the measurement down the back of the leg, plus 12cm.
Y is 20 to 30 cm.
Z is half the circumference of the thigh.
W is half the measurement taken between the legs.
The gusset is about 15 cm wide
Though many re-enactors choose to wear trousers, hose were more typical among the Anglo-Saxons and Normans, as well as the Byzantines, during the Varangian era. They are surprisingly stretchable.
Pattern for hose
Well-made hose are a delight to wear; the main downside (and it's fairly minor) is the "sag" factor, which can be lessened by gartering below the knee. Make sure they are as long as possible, so they come as far up the leg as you can - the tops shouldn't be visible under the tunic. The above pattern is VERY useful, though you can also do the "feet" as though you're making pair of ordinary turnshoes, and sew them to the legs. The trick with getting hose to fit is (i) make them too big and tack (ie temporarily sew) them up the back so you have enough room to get them on, then (ii) progressively tack them tighter and tighter until they're as tight as they can be while still able to be put on. THAT's the line of your seam. (Make sure you can get them on the right way out, by the way, not just inside out). Then trim off excess fabric. The tighter they are to the leg, the better they look. Now, footed hose (and to a lesser degree un-footed hose) have an interesting issue relating to getting the thing on over your heel. Basically, to have enough room to do this, you need to make the ankle a little baggy (as tight as you can get it, however, while still being able to get your foot in). They are comfortable and not often over-warm - even in hot weather. And they look SO much better than trousers.Shoes and boots are easy to make, and can often be produced in an afternoon or two. Buying pieces of leather can be expensive so it’s a good idea to pool resources and buy a whole hide, then have a working bee. You should use approx. 3mm leather for soles, and 1 - 2.5mm for uppers. Until you have decent footwear, it is possible to "make do" with brown (or black) leather shoes. However please don’t wear running shoes. There’s nothing quite so terrible as seeing someone in mediaeval gear with runners on their feet. Almost anything else (including bare feet) would be better.
This pattern is of a shoe that, though not as widespread as more sophisticated ones, is nonetheless attested by a reasonable number of examples over quite a long period. It needs almost no sewing, and can be made by the most ham-fisted amateur. However, when I made a pair, I didn't find them very comfortable (though this may have been due to my lack of skill).
Shoe pattern from Ribe, Denmark c. 750 AD
Men’s and women’s footwear were very similar. There is a wide range available, depending on which race/culture you want to portray. Unfortunately, popular as high boots seem to be among re-enactors, there is next to no evidence for them among the Vikings or Anglo-Saxons - they wore shoes and ankle-high boots.
Byzantine and Islamic cavalry often wore boots of calf or even knee-length, but infantry and civilians wore shoes.
It is important to be aware that shoes were sewn together inside out, and then "turned", so the seams are on the inside. Another important point is to make as many holes in the sole as in the upper before you sew them together, so you don’t get any overlap (very embarrassing).
These two patterns (both by Peter Beatson of Birka Traders ( http://www.birkatraders.com/test ) , and only for personal, not commercial use) come from York, a city inhabited by both Anglo-Saxons and Vikings during our period, and are of a type very widespread in Anglo-Saxon and Viking finds. The shoe is relatively easy to make; the ankle-boot needs a bit more skill.
Shoe pattern from Parliament St, York
Boot pattern from Coppergate, York See these footwear patterns for a very comprehensive collection of shoes and boots from archaeological finds. Note that Marc Carlson, the owner of the site, has added a warning - he has not tried making the shoes from these patterns himself, so he can't guarantee they'll work.
Cloaks were usually made of wool for warmth, in the colours mentioned in Section 2a. They were sometimes lined with other fabric or with fur, and were usually held on with a bronze or silver brooch. Cloaks were either semi-circular, rectangular or square, and of various lengths (many Vikings seem to have worn them quite short). Byzantine cloaks often had a decorative panel known as a tablion on each edge about chest height. Though hoods don’t seem to have existed in our period, the cloak could be drawn over the head to keep the rain off.
Cloak patterns
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There were a lot of variations in headwear. Women throughout Europe and in Byzantium wore a scarf or veil covering the head. This is easily made from a rectangle of lightweight fabric, about 60cm wide and 180cm long, wrapped around the head as shown below, and in Section B above. Viking women often wore small "bonnets" of linen or silk, as shown below.
Woman’s headwear (English c.1130) :
Viking woman’s "bonnet" (silk) found at
York, England
Though male Viking re-enactors often wear fur caps, there is very little evidence of what was really used. Anglo-Saxon men are shown in some manuscripts wearing "Phrygian caps", but are more often shown bare-headed. In the
East (including Byzantium) turbans were common. However, there were many other
choices available.
Fur hat : Phrygian cap : Some Byzantine hats
MORE CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR PATTERNS This page, by Marc Carlson, is perhaps the best resource on the Net for historically accurate patterns for clothing from archaeological finds.
Text copyright (c) 2002 by Steven Lowe.
The material in this page is for research purposes only. Permission to reproduce material from this manual with author acknowledgment is granted for non-commercial purposes
Last Updated 14 July 2005
