Croatian man's jacket (surina)

A man's jacket, a 'surina', perhaps wedding attire. A straight garment, hip-length, with collar, and long sleeves set in at right angles. Ground made from dark brown fulled woven wool cloth. Fine, ornate couched embroidery on much of the front, collar, shoulders, hemline and in two triangular panels on the back and lower sleeves. Orange/red is the predominant colour (woollen yarn), with white, green, blue and purple mercerised cotton yarns. The couched yarns are plaited and braided. Thin strips of red and white fulled cloth with spots stitched to centre front opening, edge of collar, sleeve ends, hemline and lower edge of each pocket. A slanting pocket on each front side. Jacket fastened with a braided wool loop and toggle, with ornate frogging made from knotted threads using gold-coloured metal-wrapped thread (some with a red wool core visible), opaque blue and transparent red glass buttons shaped like flowers and six small red/white/blue pompoms. Lined with cream wool woven cloth (pilled).

Text from Eth Doc 1892, no. 13d: Made by men village tailors, possibly for a wedding. Originally a winter garment it is now worn for decoration all year round. It is made from thick dark brown home produced felted woollen cloth. It is waist length, with long sleeves set in at right angles. It is lavishly decorated with rows of bright red and white braid and embroidery in coloured cotton. The sleeves and the lower fronts of the front panels have a large triangular area and there are wide bands of decoration around the coat edge and over the shoulders. There is a triangular panel at the back under the collar. The lapels have layers of different coloured scalloped felt, similar to the waistcoat [Eu1997,04.23]. The front has two decorated pockets. The garment is lined with a white woollen material. The jacket is secured by means of a toggle and plaited woollen loop mounted on plaited cloth and metal medallions set with clear red and opaque blue glass set in metallic buttons. There are also red and white bobbles.
The jacket is usually worn slung over the right, sometimes left, shoulder in a military fashion, and was influenced by the uniforms of the Hussars of the occupying Austro-Hungarian forces.
Religion: Roman Catholic. For other parts of this attire see: 25: shirt; 26: trousers; 27: waistcoat; 29: neck-tie; 30: shoes.