Skaramangion

The skaramangion (Greek: σκαραμάγγιον) was a caftan-like tunic in the Byzantine Empire.

The garment was likely of Persian origin, and took the form of a long-sleeved tunic, worn belted, with slits on front and back or the sides, indicating a likely origin as a rider's garment.[1][2]

The garment was popular among Byzantine courtiers, and became the main everyday court uniform of the middle Byzantine period, along with the sagion cloak.[1] The Byzantine emperors alone had the right to wear skaramangia of imperial purple, but red and golden variants were also worn by emperors.[1] Surviving depictions show the garment made of silk, with gold armbands and a gold border along the hem and slits.[1]

According to Liutprand of Cremona, skaramangia were used as diplomatic gifts by the emperors.[1]

References
  1. Ševčenko 1991, p. 1908.
  2. Parani 2003, p. 57 (note 27).

Sources
  • Parani, Maria G. (2003). Reconstructing the Reality of Images: Byzantine Material Culture and Religious Iconography (11th to 15th Centuries). Leiden, South Holland: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-12462-2.
  • Ševčenko, Nancy Patterson (1991). "Skaramangion". In Kazhdan, Alexander (ed.). The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. p. 1908. ISBN 0-19-504652-8.
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