This month's cover design is of the Sultan's Swordbearer in his ceremonial uniform.

This high-ranking position was always held by the commander of the Suvarileri (the Imperial cavalry).

This drawing is taken from Thomas McLean's 1814 book, "Picturesque Representations of the Dress and Manners of the Turks." The 60 color drawings in this book are obviously by the same artist as McLean's more famous "The Military Costume of Turkey" -- in fact several illustrations are almost identical. The forward gives the artist's name as Monsieur Dalvimart and says the drawings were made about four years previously.

This is unlikely as the drawings include pictures of the Nizam-i Jedid (disbanded in 1807) and of Mahmud II as a child (he would have been 30 years old in 1814). The text also includes references to Sultan Selim as the reigning monarch. If I had to guess, I'd suspect the pictures where actually made about 1800.

The description accompanying this illustration gives the title of the officer as the SelictarAga and describes him as wearing "a superb habit of cloth of gold, which is almost the only Turkish dress that fits close to the body."

The sleeveless, floor-length outer garment is a brillant crimson with richly worked gold designs and gold piping at the collar and down the front. The belt at the waist and the headband also appear to be gold. The long-sleeved undershirt is a sort of mustard yellow as are the boots. The cap, also a brilliant crimson, appears to include a piece of cloth hanging down the back similar to the style of a Janissary's cap.

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