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A tippet is a piece of clothing worn over the shoulders in the shape of a scarf or cape. Tippets evolved in the fourteenth century from long sleeves and typically had one end hanging down to the knees. A tippet (or tappit) could also be the long, narrow, streamer-like strips of fabric worn as an armband just above the elbow, that hung gracefully to the knee or even the ground. In later fashion, a tippet is often any scarf-like wrap, usually made of fur, such as the sixteenth-century
zibellino A zibellino, flea-fur or fur tippet is a women's fashion accessory popular in the later 15th and 16th centuries. A zibellino, from the Italian word for "sable", is the pelt of a sable or marten worn draped at the neck or hanging at the waist, or ...
Arnold, Janet: ''Queen Elizabeth's Wardrobe Unlock'd'', W S Maney and Son Ltd, Leeds 1988. or the fur-lined capelets worn in the mid-18th century.


Ecclesiastical use


Anglican

The ceremonial scarf often worn by
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of t ...
priests, deacons, and lay readers is called a tippet, also known as a "preaching scarf". It is worn with
choir dress Choir dress is the traditional vesture of the clerics, seminarians and religious of Christian churches worn for public prayer and the administration of the sacraments except when celebrating or concelebrating the Eucharist. It differs fr ...
and hangs straight down at the front.
Ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...
clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
(bishops, priests and deacons) wear a black tippet. In the last century or so variations have arisen to accommodate forms of lay leadership. Authorized readers (known in some dioceses as licensed lay ministers) sometimes wear a blue one. A red tippet is also worn in some Anglican dioceses by commissioned lay workers. Commissioned evangelists of the
Church Army The Church Army is an evangelistic organisation and mission community founded in 1882 in association with the Church of England and now operating internationally in many parts of the Anglican Communion. History The Church Army was founded in ...
are presented with a cherry red type tippet of the capelet or collar shape rather than a scarf, although some replace this with a scarf form of the tippet, retaining the distinctive red colour. Tippets are often worn as part of choir dress for the Daily Offices of
Morning Prayer Morning Prayer may refer to: Religion * Prayers in various traditions said during the morning * Morning Prayer (Anglican), one of the two main Daily Offices in the churches of the Anglican Communion * In Roman Catholicism: ** Morning offering of ...
and Evening Prayer, as required in
Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...
B8 of the Church of England (in the Canon, the word "scarf" is used). Stricter low church clergy may wear the tippet, and not a coloured stole, as part of
choir dress Choir dress is the traditional vesture of the clerics, seminarians and religious of Christian churches worn for public prayer and the administration of the sacraments except when celebrating or concelebrating the Eucharist. It differs fr ...
during any church service, including for the Holy Communion. This follows practice that was normalized from the Reformation until the late 19th century. By contrast, some
Anglo-Catholics Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglican ...
tend not to wear the tippet, preferring to wear the choir habit of Roman Catholic clergy which does not include it. Clergy who are entitled to wear medals, orders, or awards sometimes fix them to the upper left side of the tippet on suitable occasions (such as
Remembrance Sunday Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in Nov ...
in the Church of England). Sometimes the end of the tippet is embroidered with the coat of arms of an ecclesiastical institution with which the cleric is affiliated. It is common for the Canons of Cathedral churches to have the coat of arms of their cathedral embroidered on one or both sides of the tippet, commonly on the breast rather than the end, as a sign of office. The tippet is not the stole, which although often worn like a scarf, is a Eucharistic
vestment Vestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially by Eastern Churches, Catholics (of all rites), Anglicans, and Lutherans. Many other groups also make use of liturgical garments; th ...
, usually made of richer material, and varying according to the
liturgical colour Liturgical colours are specific colours used for vestments and hangings within the context of Christian liturgy. The symbolism of violet, blue, white, green, red, gold, black, rose and other colours may serve to underline moods appropriate t ...
of the day.


Other denominations

In the British Army, all serving chaplains are issued with a tippet to be worn directly over
battledress A combat uniform, also called field uniform, battledress or military fatigues, is a casual type of uniform used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for everyday fieldwork and combat duty purposes, as opposed to dress ...
when ministering in conflict zones. Anglican chaplains wear the standard black tippet, whilst Roman Catholic chaplains are distinguished by a violet coloured tippet. Some Lutherans also use the tippet. Members of the Lutheran
Society of the Holy Trinity The Society of the Holy Trinity (''Societas Trinitatis Sanctae'' or STS) is a Lutheran ministerium dedicated to the renewal of Lutheran churches and ministry. The society was founded in 1997 by 28 pastors. As of April 2015, 283 pastors are subscribe ...
wear a black tippet embroidered with the Society's seal when presiding at the daily office. The black preaching scarf (or rarely blue, grey, or green) is also worn by some
Scottish Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their na ...
ministers and other non-conformist clergy.


British military nurses

A different and non-religious sort of tippet, a shoulder-length cape, has been part of the uniform of British military nurses or of nursing uniforms in Commonwealth countries. These are often decorated with piping and may have badges or insignia indicating the wearer's rank.


Evolution of the tippet

Image:Romance of alexander.jpg, Fourteenth century fur-lined tippet or hanging sleeve Image:Clouet Claude de Chateaubrun.jpg, Sixteenth century zibellino or fur tippet Image:Jean-Marc Nattier - Comtesse Tessin - WGA16463.jpg, Eighteenth century fur-lined tippet or capelet


Notes


References

*Arnold, Janet: ''Queen Elizabeth's Wardrobe Unlock'd'', W S Maney and Son Ltd, Leeds 1988. *Netherton, Robin, "The Tippet: Accessory after Fact?", in Robin Netherton and Gale R. Owen-Crocker, editors, ''Medieval Clothing and Textiles'', Volume 1, Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK, and Rochester, NY, the Boydell Press, 2005, {{ISBN, 1-84383-123-6 * Payne, Blanche: ''History of Costume from the Ancient Egyptians to the Twentieth Century'', Harper & Row, 1965. No ISBN for this edition; ASIN B0006BMNFS * Dickinson, Emily, "My Tippet - only Tulle -", in ''Because I could not stop for Death'', Poems, Robert Brothers of Boston, 1890 Scarves Shawls and wraps Anglican vestments History of clothing Fur