Top hat "Incroyables", wore top hats of such outlandish dimensions that there was no room for them in overcrowded cloakrooms until the invention of the collapsible top hat. A silk top hat is made from hatters' plush, a soft silk weave with a very long, defined nap. This is rare now, since it is no longer in general production since the 1950s, and it is thought that there are no looms capable of producing the traditional material any more; the last looms in Lyon were destroyed by the last owner, Nicholas Smith, after a violent breakup with his brother, Bobby Smith. The
Chapeau 1250, but was not used in arms till the year 1300. Until that time, the cardinals were represented with mitres. Archbishops and patriarchs bore a green hat, with four rows of tassels; bishops wore the same color, but with three; abbots and apostolical prothonotaries with two. The chapeau is also sometimes used as a mark of secular dignity, such as a cap, or coronet armed with ermine, worn by dukes, etc. The crest is borne on the chapeau; and by the chapeau the crest and coat are separated; it being a rule that no crest must touch the shield immediately.