Aventail

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2009)

An early aventail guarded the wearer's head, neck, and chin between a mail shirt and a helmet.

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Aventail.

An aventail or camail is a flexible curtain of mail on a helmet that extends to cover the neck and shoulders. The mail could be attached to the helm by threading a leather cord through brass rings at the edge of the helm. Aventails were most commonly seen on bascinets in the 14th century and served as a replacement for a mail coif. Some aventails were decorated with edging in brass or bronze links (sometimes gilded), or with a zig-zag lower edge (vandyked). By the late 15th century, the aventail had replaced the mail coif completely. Only those who were poor or who were collectors of the sort had a mail coif.

Aventails were typically attached to the helmet via small staples known as vervelles.

v d e Components of medieval armour Head Armet · Barbute · Bascinet · Burgonet · Cervelliere · Close helm · Close helmet · Great helm · Frog mouth (helm) · Hounskull · Lobster tail pot · Mail coif · Morion · Nasal helmet · Sallet · Spangenhelm · Kettle hat Visor · Falling buffe · Nossel Neck Aventail · Bevor · Gorget  · Pixane Torso Brigandine · Cuirass · Culet · Plackart  · Fauld · Hauberk · Codpiece · Lance rest · Loin-guard  · Jack of plate Arms Ailette · Besagew · Couter · Gauntlet · Pauldron · Rerebrace · Spaulder · Vambrace Legs Chausses · Cuisses · Greave · Poleyn · Sabaton · Schynbald · Tasset Tonnlets · Bases (both used for tournament) Component pieces Gousset · Lamé · Rondel

This medieval armour-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v d e