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Caracalla

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Caracalla or Caracallus

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Dictionaries
Dictionary of Early Christian Biography
• Caracalla, the Nickname of M. Aurelius Severus Antoninus Bassianus
Encyclopedias
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica
• Caracalla
McClintock and Strong's Bible Encyclopedia
• Caracalla
• Caracalla or Caracallus
The Nuttall Encyclopedia
• Caracalla
The Catholic Encyclopedia
• Caracalla
The Jewish Encyclopedia
• Caracalla

was originally a garment peculiar to Gaul, and introduced into Roman use by M. Aurelius Antoninus. Ecclesiastical writers (Bede, Hist. Eccl. lib. i, c. 7) speak of it as worn by clerics, and as corresponding in shape to the Jewish ephod. So says St. Eucherius of Lyons, about the 5th century, referring evidently to the genuine Gallic caracalla, which was a kind of short tunic with sleeves, and furnished with a hood. The caracalla introduced into use by M. Aurelius was, however, lengthened so as to reach nearly to the feet. From the reference to this garment by St. Jerome (Epistle to Fitbiola), it is likely that, in common with other garments for outdoor use, it was furnished with a hood.