A Mantle is a piece of clothing, similar to a robe but open on the front side and often sleeveless. It is worn over the outer garments.

All other meanings of the word derive from this one.

Orthodox clerical garment

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In the Eastern Orthodox Church the mantle (Russian: мантия, "mantiya") is a distinctive garment worn by bishop, hegumens, archimandrites and other monastic clergy in various church ceremonies and services, such as Vespers, but not when serving the liturgy. The mantiya is a sleeveless cape that fastens at the neck and the feet and is worn by all Orthodox Christian monks of the lesser schema. The mantiya is black when worn by a monk a hegumen or an archimandrite may have embroidered crosses on the front vestments, but when the bishop formally enters the church before Divine Liturgy ^*" target="_blank" >or when a bishop is formally attending a service in which he is not serving [http://ocaphoto.oca.org/filetmp/2005/May/1002/Detail/DSC_0015.jpg. Instead of black, bishops use other colors: red for bishops; purple for archbishops; blue for metropolitans; and green for patriarchs. The episcopal mantiya is characteristically decorated with red and white ribbons (called "streams", symbolizing the word going out into the entire world) and four rectangular embroidered appliqués, two at the neck and two at the feet (called "tablets", symbolizing the Gospel which must be the focus of a bishop's teachings).

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