The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal

Volume 2 Issue 1 Spring 2021 Article 7

2021

Costuming Characters in Early Medieval Irish Literature

Lydia Lee Yale University

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Recommended Citation Lee, Lydia (2021) "Costuming Characters in Early Medieval Irish Literature," The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal: Vol. 2 : Iss. 1 , Article 7. Available at: https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/yurj/vol2/iss1/7

This Article is brought to you for free and open access by EliScholar – A Digital Platform for Scholarly Publishing at Yale. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal by an authorized editor of EliScholar – A Digital Platform for Scholarly Publishing at Yale. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Costuming Characters in Early Medieval Irish Literature

Cover Page Footnote Written for Sebastian Rider-Bezerra’s course HIST 207J: Medieval Britain

This article is available in The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal: https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/yurj/vol2/iss1/ 7 Lee: Costuming Characters in Early Medieval Irish Literature Lee | Medieval Irish History

Costuming Characters in Early Medieval Irish Literature

By Lydia Lee1 1Department of History, Yale University

ABSTRACT Clothing in early medieval Irish literature can often serve as a representation of a character’s wealth and status. However, this paper asserts that the storytellers of these texts costume characters in or- der to reflect more nuanced layers of their identity. By examining the ways in which clothing is desc- cribed in Irish tales from the Mythological Cycle and the Ulster Cycle, as well as the legal text “Cáin Íarraith,” this paper argues that storytellers use garments to indicate a character’s geographical roots and occupation, reinforce customs and strengthen social bonds, comment on gender roles of aristocrat- ic women, and serve as a characterization device. By analyzing how attire is portrayed in these texts, one can glean how this society may have used clothing to define identity beyond socioeconomic class.

Early medieval Irish literature regularly employs detailed descrip- Coatswort and Gale R. Owen-Crocker, in Medieval Textiles of the tions of nobles and heroes dressed in lavish clothing, which are British Isles, AD 450-1100: An Annotated Bibliography, have also often interpreted as indicators of their wealth and position in so- described textiles as a “signifier of wealth and status” (19). While ciety. However, clothing is more than merely a class marker; sto- these prominent scholars have primarily viewed and interpreted rytellers use garments to display more complex dimensions of the clothing in early medieval Irish literature from an economic per- wearer’s societal identity and function in the story. In narratives spective, this paper investigates attire from a different lens: how from the Mythological Cycle, “Togail Bruidne Da Derga” and storytellers costume characters to add layers of complexity to their “Suidigud Tellaich Temra,” the storyteller uses a character’s dress identity. to represent his or her geographical roots and vocation. Tales from the Ulster Cycle, including “Táin Bó Fráich,” “Toruigheacht Gru- Indeed, storytellers do often use clothing to reveal the wearer’s aidhe Griansholus,” and “The Wooing of Emer by Cú Chulainn,” wealth and class in early medieval Irish narratives. In the heroic demonstrate how garments can reinforce social customs and ful- tale “Táin Bó Fráich,” as Fráich approaches the plain of Cruachan, fill relational obligations. Wooing stories such as “Altram Tige Dá his cohort boasts seven trumpeters with “shining tunics” and “many Medar” and “The Wooing of Etain,” as well as the legal text “Cáin coloured garments” in a massive display of his wealth, to which Íarraith,” describe how embroidery confirms aristocratic preroga- the watchman declares, “there shall not come to them, a multitude, tives for women. The storyteller of “Tochmarc Becfhola” also uses which is more beautiful, or which is more splendid,” affirming clothing to further character development. In early medieval Irish Fráich’s great prestige and influence (Heroic Romances of Ireland). literature, storytellers deliberately costume characters not only to In the epic Táin Bó Cúailnge, when Medb and Ailill disagree on indicate their social status, but also to reveal other attributes of their who is wealthier, they bring out all of their “purple, blue, black, identity to a contemporary audience who understood their signifi- green, and yellow, plain grey and many-coloured, yellow-brown, cance. Thus, in analyzing how dress adds nuance to a character’s checked and striped” cloth in order to see who owns more (52). portrayal, one can investigate how early medieval Irish society de- Possessing a larger quantity and variety of textiles in many colors fined and perceived identity. signifies one’s superior economic status; thus, when one displays one’s cloth, one is flaunting one’s wealth and standing in society. In the scholarly debate regarding the function of costume in early In the wooing story “Toruigheacht Gruaidhe Griansholus,” when medieval Irish literature and society, many have described clothing Laoi tells Cúchulainn to “don thy valourous apparel” in preparation as a mere status symbol. In her article, “Dress and Accessories in for battle, Cúchulainn puts on a “white, delicately-soft satin” shirt, the Early Irish Tale ‘The Wooing Of Becfhola,” Niamh Whitfield a “gold-bordered tunic of orange silk,” two blue-green silk buskins, describes the clothing in “Tochmarc Becfhola” as conveying a “seven and twenty” waxed shirts, and a brown doublet of the leath- “clear message” regarding the characters’ “wealth and status” (3). er of “seven oxhides,” adorned with “brilliant shining gems” (45). Likewise, in her book, Dress in Ireland, Mairead Dunlevy observes Precious textiles and gemstones are prevalent even in garments as that early Irish literature refers to clothing “principally as an indica- functional as armor; even in battle, one is expected to exhibit one’s tor of the status of the wearer,” since “wealth dictated dress styles wealth and status. Outfitting characters with lavish clothing in or- as well as fabrics” (22-25). One’s status and wealth is reflected in der to indicate their high position in society is a pervasive trope the type, quality, and quantity of fabric used in one’s garments, as used by storytellers of early medieval Irish literature. well as their “colour and decoration” (Dunlevy 40-59). Elizabeth Published by EliScholar – A Digital Platform for Scholarly Publishing at Yale, 2021 1 Spring 2021 YURJ | Vol 2.1 1 Lee | Medieval Irish HistoryThe Yale Undergraduate Research Journal, Vol. 2 [2021], Iss. 1, Art. 7

While clothing is commonly interpreted as indicating one’s sta- cloak, and a brooch of red gold on each cloak, and pale white tunics tus and prosperity, it is far too limiting to examine costume solely with loop-animals of gold around them” (“Medieval Sourcebook”). through this viewpoint. Storytellers can also use garments to spec- According to the Old Irish “Law of the Fosterage Fee,” or the “Cáin ify the wearer or owner’s geographical origin and current occupa- Íarraith,” only sons of kings and other heroes were allowed to wear tion, two dimensions of a person’s identity other than wealth or blue in this society (Whitfield, “Dress and Accessories” 11). There- social standing. The mythological tale “Suidigud Tellaich Temra” fore, the act of giving fifty cloaks of this color not only indicates describes the “many treasures, her satin, her serge, her silks, her Fráich’s prosperity and prestige, but it also demonstrates his strate- cloths, her green spotted cloth” of the “eastern part in the east,” gic choice to impress the parents of his desired bride. Giving cloth- establishing a regional identity by highlighting the geographical ing as gifts could also serve as a seal of an alliance or signify the de- velopment of a friendship: in “Togail Bruidne Da Derga,” Conaire gives Da Derge of Leinster, among other gifts, “a hundred mantles made of close cloth,” thus deeming him his “friend” (“Medieval “Clothing can be used as a tool to Sourcebook”). Clothing also acts as a desirable wedding gift: in the Táin Bó Cúailnge, Medb declares to her husband, Ailill, that communicate two facets of the character’s she brought him “the best wedding gift a bride can bring,” which includes “apparel enough for a dozen men” (52). By staging the identity: regional roots and vocation.” characters’ performance of wearing or giving specific garments in medieval Irish literature, storytellers refer to the proper social con- duct and relationships already established in this society. specificity of the textiles (Best 149). Moreover, in the heroic tale “Togail Bruidne Da Derga,” when Fer Rogain hears about those Specific interactions with clothing are intrinsically linked with wearing “three short black cowls about them reaching to their el- gender within early medieval Irish literature and culture; the most bows” with “long hoods...on the cowls,” he concludes that they notable example is embroidery, which is used by storytellers to em- must be the “trio of Pictland, who went into exile from their coun- phasize the presence of a woman of high social status. Embroidery try” (“Medieval Sourcebook”). A character’s dress can also help to is considered one of the few appropriate activities for aristocratic identify his or her occupation: those with “three speckled mantles... women in this society, as it is decidedly decorative, not utilitari- three linen shirts with red insertion: three golden brooches in their an: Old Irish Laws refer to the needle of the embroideress as the mantles” are immediately identified by Fer Rogain as the “three “prerogative of high-ranking women,” or noblewomen, who gen- poets” of the king (“Medieval Sourcebook”). Furthermore, in the erally do not work for profit (Whitfield, “Dress and Accessories” wooing narrative “The Wooing of Emer by Cú Chulainn,” a man 9). Indeed, according to the law-text “Cáin Íarraith,” in contrast to wears a distinctive garment that identifies him as a charioteer: a the daughter of an ócaire, or a free-man, who focuses on learning “shoulder-mantle with sleeves about him, with openings at his two to use the quern, the kneading trough, and the sieve, the daughter elbows,” which would have given him greater range of motion of the aire-tuíseo, or the “lord of precedence,” and the daughter of when steering the chariot (72). In fact, in Dress in Ireland, Dunlevy the king learn sewing, cloth-cutting, and embroidery (Ghrádaigh states that charioteers, as well as soldiers and some workers, wore a 93). As embroidery does not involve intensive manual labor, it is “distinctive style of clothing” that would allow for “ease of move- also viewed in this society as a form of leisure: “Altram Tige Dá ment” (21). The storytellers’ contemporary audience perceived how Medar” describes the “merriment of the maidens at their slow em- characters’ identities were framed and represented through dress by broidery,” presenting a prescriptive view of aristocratic women in relying on prior knowledge of cultural associations between dress which they derive pleasure from and find camaraderie in the shared and region or occupation in this society. In turn, clothing can be activity (“The Fosterage of the House of the Two Pails”). More- used as a tool to communicate two facets of the character’s identity: over, a woman who is skilled in this field is highly valued in this regional roots and vocation. society: in “The Wooing of Etain,” Etain is praised as one who “surpassed all women in embroidery. Her eyes saw nothing that Additionally, storytellers describe characters’ interactions with her hands could not embroider,” lauding her ability to display this clothing in order to reflect implicit societal norms of mourning and feminine virtue (Heroic Romances of Ireland). As a noblewoman’s gift-giving. Special dress is prescribed for mourning rituals; during role is most prevalent in the domestic realm, embroidery is a proper the lament-cry on Cruachan in “Táin Bó Fráich,” there are “three form of feminine activity prescribed to her by this culture. Thus, times fifty women with crimson tunics, with green head-dresses, a character’s skill in embroidery represents her influence, accom- with brooches of silver on their wrists” (Heroic Romances of Ire- plishments, and value to society. land). The messenger immediately recognizes their clothing as mourning dress and concludes that these women are lamenting Furthermore, storytellers can outfit characters with royal garments Fráich’s alleged death (Heroic Romances of Ireland). Likewise, to accentuate their key role in the scene. In “Togail Bruidne Da the audience is likely to have recognized these clothing items as Derga,” King Eochaid Feidlech sees a woman washing who has funeral attire, making a connection between those described in the a “curly and purple” mantle, “a beautiful cloak, and in the mantle literature and those used in their own rites. Furthermore, garments silvery fringes arranged, and a brooch of fairest gold” (“Medieval can serve as lavish gifts when paying a visit to a noble’s home: Sourcebook”). A purple cloak and a golden brooch are considered when Fráich visits Ailill and Medb in hopes of eloping with their marks of a king’s son in this society; indeed, taken together, they daughter Findabair in “Togail Bruidne Da Derga,” he gives them represent an “emblem of kingship” (Whitfield, “Dress and Acces- “fifty dark-blue cloaks” and “four black-grey,” with “rings on each sories” 11). Therefore, by attributing this specific dress to a female https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/yurj/vol2/iss1/7 2 2 YURJ | Vol 2.1 Spring 2021 Lee: Costuming Characters in Early Medieval Irish Literature Lee | Medieval Irish History

character, the storyteller clearly distinguishes her as one who is Clothing, as described in early medieval Irish literature, is not worthy of attention and who likely possesses great influence. As a monolithic in its purpose; indeed, it serves a more complex sym- matter of fact, she is Etain, the “loveliest” of all women, and King bolic function than simply displaying one’s social status or wealth. Eochaid immediately falls in love with her (“Medieval Source- A careful analysis of how storytellers costume characters reveals book”). In the “The Wooing of Emer by Cú Chulainn,” a “dark a multilayered use of clothing to delineate the characters’ societal sad man” wears similar royal regalia as Etain: a “beautiful purple role and narrative function. Storytellers can use garments to indi- five-folded tunic” with a “brooch of inlaid gold,” again indicating cate the wearer’s geographic origin and occupation, reinforce social his significance without explicitly mentioning his name, occupa- interactions and customs, and confirm the prerogative of aristocrat- tion, or status (72). As purple is the color of “power,” it is thus ic women. They can also describe clothing to highlight those who the “most common” color that is worn by protagonists (Whitfield, play key roles in a scene and to deepen characterization. These lit- “Aristocratic Display” 165-176). Correspondingly, the man wear- erary choices, in turn, provide insight into how this society defined ing purple is revealed to be Cú Chulainn, the protagonist of the identity. While it is uncertain how factual or reliable these sources narrative and a heroic champion who has come to woo the beau- are at describing early medieval Irish life as it was truly lived, they tiful Emer (“The Wooing of Emer by Cú Chulainn” 72). In these do reveal the storytellers’ values as depicted by how they costume tales, the storyteller highlights the characters as the focal point of their characters, and, by extension, the values of the culture. the scene by costuming them with purple garments, signaling the audience to pay attention to them. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS In addition, characters’ interactions with clothing can provide in- sight into their disposition, development, and intentions. In the Written for Sebastian Rider-Bezerra’s course HIST 207J: Medieval wooing narrative “Tochmarc Becfhola,” Becfhola, who is dissat- Britain. isfied in her arranged marriage with Diarmait, uses her supposed need to retrieve “eight smocks with embroidery of gold, eight brooches fully set, and three diadems of gold” as a ruse for attempt- REFERENCES ing to seduce the king’s foster-son, then eventually leaves with Flann, a fairy lover (Silva Gadelica). In “Toruigheacht Gruaidhe Best, R. I. “The Settling of the Manor of Tara.” Ériu, vol. 4, 1910, Griansholus,” after Cúchulainn’s victory over the Ga Bulga, fairy pp. 121–172. JSTOR, jstor.org/stable/30005643. Accessed 17 Nov. hosts “stripped him of his bloodstained, reddened tunics, and they 2020. clothed him in shining, full-beautiful garments,” transforming him Coatsworth, Elizabeth., and Gale R Owen-Crocker. Medieval Tex- tiles of the British Isles, AD 450-1100: An Annotated Bibliogra- “Storytellers use clothing to indicate phy. Oxford, England: Archaeopress, 2007. changes in characters’ personas and to Dunlevy, Mairead. Dress in Ireland. Collins Press, 1989. Ghrádaigh, Jenifer N. “Mere Embroiderers? Women and Art in serve as an external representation of Early Medieval Ireland.” Reassessing the Roles of Women as ‘Mak- ers’ of Medieval Art and Architecture, edited by Therese Martin, their inner motives.” Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2012, pp. 93-128.

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