Figure 1.--Here are some of the younger choristers at an English Anglican choir school. Note that some wear mortarboard caps. The boys had to reach a certain level of competence before they were awarded their motsrboards.. |
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The square academic cap has a variety of names. It is commonly called a mortarboard in the United States because it looks somewhat like the hawk used by bricklayers to hold their mortar. We don't know if this term is also used in Britain. We do note that the British sometimes use the term Oxford cap. Other terms include: square, trencher, or corner-cap. The mortar board is an item of academic dress which consists of a horizontal square board fixed upon a skull-cap, with a tassel or liripipe, attached to the center. Traditionally the mortarboard is black, but in the United States various colors are worn. The mortar board is the tyoe of headwear referred to in the term "cap and gown". The origins of the mortarboard are not fully understood. It may have had Roman origins. It almost certainly is related to the "biretta", a square-top cap worn by medieval Roman Catholic clergy. As early universities were founded by the Church and instructors were priests and other churchmen, these caps became seen as academic headwear long after the clergy no longer wore them. We note both masters and students wearing mortar boards in the 9th century at some English preparatory and public schools.
They were often worn with Eton collars, a popular school style for many decades. We no longer see them commonly worn at Englisg schools by the students, except at a few choir schools. Academics do wear them at formal occassions. They are also worn by university students for their graduation ceremony. This is very common in Britain and the United States and many other countries have adopted the convention. Caps and gowns are also used for American high school graduations. These caps and gowns are traditionally black, but some schools have adopted colored caps and downs. American universiies have developed an elaborate color scheme where the tassel reflects the subject in which the degree is earned.
The square academic cap has a variety of names. It is commonly called a mortarboard in the United States because it looks somewhat like the hawk used by bricklayers to hold their mortar. We don't know if this term is also used in Britain. We do note that the British sometimes use the term Oxford cap. Other terms include: square, trencher, or corner-cap. The mortar board is the tyoe of headwear referred to in the term "cap and gown".
The origins of the mortarboard are not fully understood. It may have had Roman origins. The Roman pileus quadratus was a type of skullcap with a superposed square. The mortar board is almost certainly is related to the "biretta", a square-top cap worn by medieval Roman Catholic clergy. As early universities were founded by the Church and instructors were priests and other churchmen, these caps became seen as academic headwear long after the clergy no longer wore them. Some sources suggest the mortar board wad influenced by practices in Islamic madrassas, but the lack of contact between Western Christian and Islamic institutions after the fall of Spanish al-Andalus seems to make this unlikely. Interestingly the great age of Arab scholarship was ended by the deadening impact of Islamic orthadoxy just as Europe began founding its great universities.
The mortar board consists of a horizontal square board fixed upon a skull-cap, with a tassel or liripipe, attached to the center.
The mortarboard in early European universities was to denote scholars thst had earned master or doctoral drgrees. Over time this destinction broke down and we even see students wearing mortarboards. We note both masters and students wearing mortar boards in the 9th century at some English preparatory and public schools. They were often worn with Eton collars, a popular school style for many decades. We no longer see them commonly worn at English schools by the students, except at a few choir schools. Here notably relgious groups run the major choir schools. Academics do wear them at formal occassions. They are also worn by university students for their graduation ceremony. This is very common in Britain and the United States and many other countries have adopted the convention. Caps and gowns are also used for American high school graduations. These caps and gowns are traditionally black, but some schools have adopted colored caps and downs.
We are not sure about the color of the mortar boards and gowns worn by medieval academics. Traditionally the mortarboard came to be black, but in the United States various colors are worn. American universiies have developed an elaborate color scheme where the tassel reflects the subject in which the degree is earned.
The mortar board is an item of academic dress.
We have very limited country informtion at this time. We note mortarboards being worn by university faculty in many countries, especially Europe and North America, reflecting the medieval university origins. It is primarily in Englnd that we see students and school masters wearing these caps and gowns. We have note them being worn at both preptatory schools and public schools as well. We believe they were also worn at some grammar schools, but mostly by the faculty. We are not sure abour earlier periods, but we think students and masters mostly commonly wore mortarboards in the 19th century. They were still worn in England in the early 20th century, but gradually were phased out after Workld War I (1914-18). They are still wirn at a few choir schools. We bote mortarboards in the United States, primsrily as formal university functions and at highschool and university graduations.
The mortarboard cap was a part of academic dress which have an interesting history of their own. Academic dress consists of academic caps, often but not exclusively a mortarboard and a gown or robe. The history of the mortarboard is not know with any percission. One account traces it back to the Italian biretta worn by scholarly clergies. The biretta is still worn by Catholic clery. It is a square cap with three or four peaks or horns, sometimes with a tuft on top. The biretta was worn as a symbol of superiority and intelligence. The biretta became popular and wereworn by more than the clergy (14th-15 centuries). We see artists, humanists, students, and learned people wearing them. Red was a particularly popular color. This appears to have signified blood and life, with the implication of power along with education and erudition. Gradually the mortr board grew out of this tradition with black becoming the standard color. The gown or robe was the other item of academic dress. The gown is formlly referred to as academic dress. The origins streach back to the medieval era when men wore robes and gowns, at least men of any rnk. Peasants and artican worker out if necesity did not wear such robes. But men of any rank or standing in socity did. This inckuded the clergy. During the Renaissance other styles devloped, especially for boys and younger men. Thos was the same period at whoch univerities developed. And this the masters/teachers at these schools, who wre normally ckerics, wore robes. Given the strong traditions at these universities, such styles became academic dress. One source suggest that university students also wore robes because the accomodations where theu lived were not welk heatd. This may be the case, but we suspect that prestige and social status was also a factor. In addition, the students at early universities were mostly apiring clerics which mean that they would be wearing clerical robes after they completed their studies. Another source suggests that academic gowns
prevent students nd masters from copeting with each other with expensive, fashionale clothing. The prestige of universities mean that academic dress became enshrined in the traditiins of the various universities. And in England, the masters at the public schools adopted university dress meaning that the traitions extended beyond the university. We also see teachers in Europe waring academic dress.
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