Mediaeval pilgrims carried very little with them – a cloak
to wear as they walk and wrap around themselves at night, a hat to shade them
from the sun, a staff to lean on as they walked and to ward off dogs, a scip (a
leather satchel slung over one shoulder in which they would carry food, money
and any documents they needed), a gourd to carry water in, a sclarin (a long
tunic from the 17th century onwards), a shell as a symbol of their
pilgrimage (it also served as something to eat off of).
At the time
what a man could wear was set down in law according to your social class and
there were punishments for wearing anything that didn’t fit your station; the
‘uniform’ of a Pilgrim was the type of clothes that unskilled labourers or
peasants would wear – they were a social leveller.
Comments
Post a Comment