The cyclas is an unfitted rectangle of cloth with an opening for the head that was worn in Europe in the Middle Ages.
Sleeveless overgowns or
tabard
A tabard is a type of short coat that was commonly worn by men during the late Middle Ages and early modern period in Europe. Generally worn outdoors, the coat was either sleeveless or had short sleeves or shoulder pieces. In its more developed ...
s derive from the cyclas. By the early 14th century, the sides began to be sewn together, creating a sleeveless overgown or surcoat.
[Payne, Blanche: History of Costume from the Ancient Egyptians to the Twentieth Century, Harper & Row, 1965]
See also
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1300–1400 in European fashion
Fashion in fourteenth-century Europe was marked by the beginning of a period of experimentation with different forms of clothing. Costume historian James Laver suggests that the mid-14th century marks the emergence of recognizable "fashion" in cl ...
References
History of clothing (Western fashion)
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