Dictionary

aventail en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈævənteɪl/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From Middle English aventayle, from Old French esventail (“air-hole”), from esventer (Modern French éventer), from Latin ex (“out”) + ventus (“wind”). Related to ventail.

Meanings

1. A curtain or flap of mail, fastened to a helmet, or to a coif (hood) of mail, covering the lower face, neck, and shoulders.
   • […] the hood was increasingly replaced with a mail curtain (the camail or aventail) suspended from the outside of the bascinet, and the bascinet thus augmented gradually replaced the clumsy great helm as the principal defense […] 1995, William W. Kibler, Medieval France: An Encyclopedia, Psychology Press, →ISBN, page 126:
2. Synonym of ventail (“movable (solid plate) front to a helmet”).

Forms

Synonyms

ventail · camail · ventail

Translations (5)

it camaglio (adjustable mail protecting the neck) · pt camal (adjustable mail protecting the neck) · ru ба́рмица (adjustable mail protecting the neck) · ca collar (adjustable mail protecting the neck) · de Helmbrünne (adjustable mail protecting the neck)