“His coat armure was of cloth of Tars,
Couched with perles.”
Tas or Tats, Egyp. Amulets of gilded sycamore wood, cornelian, jasper, glass, &c., found suspended from the necks of mummies.
Tassel-gentle, O. E. (for tercel-gentle). A species of hawk. (Shakspeare.)
Tasses. Flaps of armour attached to the bottom of the breastplate for the protection of the thighs.
Tat or Dad, Egyp. A sculptor’s stool; a religious emblem worn by gods and sacred animals round the neck. The term was also probably a name of Mendés.
Tau, Taucross. (1) Her. A cross formed like the letter T, so called in Greek. This charge is also called the Cross of St. Anthony. (2) Chr. As a motive for ornamental design the tau is the ancient form of the episcopal staff as represented in the catacombs. Originally curved like the pagan lituus, it became in the 8th century straight. The Taus were often hollowed to contain relics, &c. (Consult Ivories, by W. Maskell, pp. 84, 85.)
Tauntons. A kind of broad cloth made at Taunton in Somersetshire.
Tavolace or Talevas (It. tavolaccio). A large thick wooden shield; like a table (tavola) of wood (hence its name), 15th century.
Tawdry. Showy. The word is said to be derived from Ethelreda torquem, St. Ethelred’s necklace, which was composed of rows of twisted lace, an ornament much used by Anglo-Saxon ladies. (Stormont.)