Fashion History

B.C. or B.C.E.Egyptian, Greeks, Romans and Byzantine

B.C. or B.C.E. What does this term

mean? It stands for Before Christ, and it means the number of years before the time of Jesus Christ. That was about 2000 years ago, so the date 552 B.C. means 2552 years ago.Some people use B.C.E. instead. That stands for Before the Common Era, and is used in order to avoid Christian references.

A.D. or C.EWhat does this term

mean?A.D. stands for Anno Domini, which is Latin for "year of our Lord," and it means the number of years since the time of Jesus Christ. That was 2000 years ago, so the date 500 A.D. means 1500 years ago.Some people use C.E. instead. That stands for Common Era, and people use it in order to avoid Christian references.

Ancient Egyptian Dress

Ancient Egyptian Dress• Clothing was not in any way a practical necessity in Ancient

Egypt. Egypt (and most of the rest of North Africa) was not the mainly desert country it is today, subject to the temperature extremes that a dry climate engenders. Then it was a lush, food-producing country, subject to annual flooding, and a warm, humid climate.

• Clothing was therefore a luxury item of no great practical value. Slaves and the poor in surviving Ancient Egyptian art are therefore usually depicted in little more than loincloths. 

• As people went up the social scale more clothing and jewelry was worn, but even then the drapery of the clothing is light and designed more to accentuate the shape of the body than conceal it. 

• The most elaborate Egyptian clothing was worn by the Pharaohs and their queens as symbols of power. 

Ancient Egyptian Dress• It is thought by some that royal Egyptians practiced body

modification by wrapping the sculls of infants and altering the head shape to be more egg like than rounded in adulthood, others ascribe this to a natural genetic fluke in the royal family.

• Aristocratic Egyptians also often shaved their heads (and other body hair) and wore wigs instead of natural hair to formal occasions. Kohl eye makeup was worn by both sexes, as were perfumes and body oils.

• Both men and women wore blue and green eyeshadow and black kohl eyeliner, when they were dressed up fancy. People also wore kohl around their eyes because it helped to keep the glare of sunlight down (which is why football players do the same thing today).

• During banquets, guests wore small mounds of beeswax impregnated with perfumed oil on top of their wigs; these mounds would melt into the wigs with the heat of the room, releasing scent, during the course of the party.

• Jewellery was the dominant costume focus, worn by both sexes; numerous examples of Ancient Egyptian jewelry survive in museums.

• Clothing has been less fortunate in survival, but linen textile scraps remain to indicate that the mostly white pleated materials that are shown in Ancient drawings were probably fine linens. These pleated linen garments are usually depicted as straight pieces of cloth, pleated to give a body-hugging stretch, that are wrapped in a variety of ways and tied or tucked in front.

Ancient Egyptian Dress

Ancient Egyptian FabricsWeaving • Woven linen has been known in Egypt since 5000 BCE. The oldest

depiction of a loom was found at Badari on a pottery dish dating from the middle of the 5th millennium BCE, while the first known pictures of weavers were drawn during the Middle Kingdom.

Linen• Flax has been grown in Egypt from very early times, since linen

fabrics have been found of neolithic, Badarian, predynastic, and First Dynasty dates respectively, and there is still a considerable flax cultivation in the country. The old Egyptian linen varies considerably in texture, from the finest gauze to a canvas-like coarseness.

Cotton• The earliest cotton fabrics that can be traced in Egypt are from

Karanog in Nubia. These were originally reported as linen, but they have since been examined by experts and are undoubtedly cotton. It is thought that they may have been of Sudanese origin, more particularly because Reisner discovered cotton fabrics at Meroe in the Sudan, and because there are early literary references to the use of cotton in Nubia, one about 250 AD and the other about eight centuries later. R. Pfister, who has made a study of early Egyptian fabrics, informs that woven cotton fabrics were not known in Egypt until a date several centuries after 640 AD and that the earliest known were not woven in Egypt.

Ancient Egyptian FabricsHemp• With respect to the use of hemp for woven fabrics in ancient

Egypt, was found in the Badarian, Predynastic, and Pan-grave cloths. The botanical source of the hemp found is not specified, but the name is applied to a large number of bast fibres from different plants, one at least of which, for instance Deccan hemp (Hibiscus cannabinus), grows in Egypt.

Papyrus• The papyrus plant, belonging to the sedge family, which at

one time grew abundantly in the marshy districts of Lower Egypt, where, however, it is no longer found, though it still flourishes in the Sudan, was employed by the Egyptians for many purposes, some of which have been enumerated by Herodotus, Theophrastus, and Pliny, but it principal value was for making sheets of material for writing upon, which was the forerunner of modern paper, to which it gave it name.

Wool• Wool, although probably always used for clothing to at least

some extent and certainly at a later date, was accounted ceremonially unclean and so, as Herodotus, referring to the Egyptians, said "nothing of wool is brought into temples, or buried with them; that is forbidden."

Egyptian Weaving

Egyptian cloth

Egyptian Inspired Garments

Egyptian Inspired Designs

Greek Fashion History

Ancient Greek Dress• Ancient Greek dress was more voluminous than that of the

Egyptians, and was most often made of fine woolens, although it is thought that the Greeks also had regular access to linen, hemp cloth and silk.

• The primary garment of Ancient Greek clothing was the Chiton, an all-over body garment made from a large rectangle of cloth wrapped once around the body from right side to right side. 

•This garment was then pinned at the shoulders and tied at the waist or hips, and draped in hanging folds about the body. •Young men generally wore short chitons, and older men andwomen longer ones.  Older men also often are depicted wearing long draped mantles either alone or over a chiton. •A smaller rectangle worn over one shoulder by travelers and young men was called a Chalmys.

Ancient Greek Dress

Ancient Greek Dress• Women's Chitons were draped in a variety of ways, and were

also worn with mantles. • Greek fabric was far more elaborate than the Egyptians, and

included complex border designs both woven in and embroidered. • Greek Jewelry, although less prominent than Egyptian jewelry,

was exceedingly complex and finely made.• Like Egyptian dress, Greek clothing was centered in an

aesthetic that idealized the human body, rather than attempting to conceal it's natural shape.

• The Greeks made many clothing decisions based on this aesthetic that were less than practical choices: Pinning garments closed instead of stitching, rarely wearing sandals or shoes despite a rocky landscape, draping garments around the body for warmth during cold instead of making garments with sleeves or trousers as their near neighbors the Phrygians (see at right) did.

• The Greeks definitely knew how to make sleeves, for their theatrical costumes had them, but for normal wear sleeves were judged less aesthetic than bare arms and so were not worn.

• Greek jewelry was also an object of much technical concentration, so much so that Western jewelry technique has only caught up to it since the Industrial Revolution. 

Ancient Greek Inspired Dress

Ancient Greek Inspired Designs

Ancient Roman Dress

Ancient Roman Dress•Roman clothing owed much to that of ancient Greece, but it had distinct forms of its own.In all the ancient world, first and foremost clothes needed to be simple. As for possible materials there was only really one. Wool, although to some extent linen was also available.The needles of the day were coarse and unwieldy by modern standards. Hence any stitching or sewing was kept to a minimum.This of course also ruled out button holes, and meant that any kind of clothing was held together either with fastenings such as broaches or clasps.•Roman dress at first glance appears to be identical to Greek dress in it's draperies and design. Closer inspection, however, reveals many important changes. First, the basic garments are sewn, not pinned, and close on both sides. Second, elaborate fabric decoration nearly disappears, and bold patterns on garments are nonexistent.

•Sandals, boots and shoes are common, virtually all men wear them, and many women. •Jewelry becomes so simple in design and execution it looks crude, even without the comparison of the fine Greek work standing in contrast to it.•Their clothing included the Tunica (which is, a simple t-tunic), the Stola (the female version of the same thing), the Toga (a extra long half-circle wool mantle worn by male citizens) and the Palla, a large, long (8 yard) drape or scarf worn by women outdoors.

Ancient Roman Dress

Toga Priest's TogaThe Pallium CloakStola and Palla

Ancient Roman Dress

Women also wore the tunic and over it they used the "stola" (a long dress with a belt around the waist) to go out they put on a coat called "pallium", with its edge they used to cover their head.

Men usually wore a short tunic; when they went out, and in particular occasions they used to wear over the tunic, the "toga", a white wool coat.

Ancient Roman Inspired Dress

Ancient Roman Inspired Designs

Byzantine Dress

Byzantine Dress•Late Roman and "Byzantine" dress is more body covering than earlier Roman costume, usually including long sleeves and long hems. This is generally assumed to be a reaction to the growing Christian view that the body was not beautiful, but a pit of vice. When the tunica is shorter (only on men) the lower limbs are encased in trousers, a "barbarian" invention first adopted by the Roman army and lower classes, and eventually (after some aristocratic resistance) by all men.

•The toga remained for emperors and other high officials in this period, but in vestigial form as a long thin (about 6") strip wrapped round the torso in the traditional manner. Long half circle capes were part of male court dress, worn in place of the old toga over the new long sleeved tunica.

•The most notable feature of the Eastern Empire's dress is its surface decoration. Unlike the earlier period which left fabric largely undecorated, the people of the Byzantine Empire used all manner of woven, embroidered and beaded surface embellishment, particularly on Church vestments and court dress.

•This style of decoration, and many of the garment shapes, survive to this day in the priestly vestments of Orthodox churches in Greece, Eastern Europe and Russia.

Byzantine Inspired Garments

Byzantine Inspired Drawings

Medieval Fashion History

Medieval Fashion History Medieval fashion during the the Middle Ages was dominated and highly influenced by the Kings and Queens of the era. Only the wealthy could dress in fashionable clothes. Sumptuary Laws restricted ordinary people in their expenditure including money spent on clothes, which impacted Medieval fashion. Under the Sumptuary Laws passed by King Edward III only royalty were allowed to wear cloth of gold and purple silk. Expensive veils were banned for lower class women. Only the wives or daughters of nobles were allowed to wear velvet, satin sable or ermine. Medieval Fashion changed with each king and queen. Different events which occurred during the Medieval times of the Middle Ages also affected fashion.The Influence of the Crusades- The Crusades was probably the greatest influence on Medieval Fashion when fine silks, satins, damasks, brocades, and velvets were imported from the Far East. The Medieval fashion worn in the royal courts in Medieval Times were imitated across Europe. Fashions in France, Spain and Italy strongly influenced the fashions of Medieval England.

Medieval Fashion History

Most people in the Middle Ages wore woolen clothing, with undergarments made of linen. Brighter colors, better materials, and a longer signs of greater wealth. The clothing of the aristocracy and wealthy merchants tended to be elaborate and changed according to the dictates of fashion.

Towards the end of the Middle Ages, men of the wealthy classes sported hose and a jacket, often with pleating or skirting, or a tunic with a surcoat. Women wore flowing gowns and elaborate headwear, ranging from headdresses shaped like hearts or butterflies to tall steeple caps and Italian turbans.

Most of the holy orders wore long woolen habits in emulation of Roman clothing. One could tell the order by the color of the habit: the Benedictines wore black; the Cistercians, undyed wool or white. St. Benedict stated that a monk's clothes should be plain but comfortable and they were allowed to wear linen coifs to keep their heads warm. The Poor Clare Sisters, an order of Franciscan nuns, had to petition the Pope in order to be permitted to wear woolen socks.

Medieval Fashion History Peasant ClothingPeasant men wore stockings or tunics, while women wore long gowns with

sleeveless tunics and wimples to cover their hair. Sheepskin cloaks and woolen hats and mittens were worn in winter for protection from the cold and rain. Leather boots were covered with wooden patens to keep the feet dry. The outer clothes were almost never laundered, but the linen underwear was regularly washed. The smell of wood smoke that permeated the clothing seemed to act as a deodorant. Peasant women spun wool into the threads that were woven into the cloth for these garments.

Medieval Fashion History Fur and Jewellery

Fur was often used to line the garments of the wealthy. Jewellery was lavish, much of it imported and often used as security against loans. Gem cutting was not invented until the fifteenth century, so most stones were not very lustrous.

Ring brooches were the most popular item from the twelfth century on.

Diamonds became popular in Europe in the fourteenth century.

By the mid-fourteenth century there were laws to control who wore what jewellery , and knights were not permitted to wear rings. Sometimes clothes were garnished with silver, but only the wealthy could wear such items.

Overview of Medieval Fashion

• People wore tunics, togas, trousers and laced sandals• The early Medieval period featured a simple shape with a

long, wide gown decorated with embroidery at the edges or borders

• Fitted tunics remained the basic item of clothes• Hose took the place of trousers• By 1200 tight lacing was used on women's clothes to create a

form fitting shape which, girdled at the hips, created a long-waisted appearance

• Gowns and sleeves were long and trailing• The length of men's clothing became shorter• Burgundian styles influenced the fashion with tight, short

clothes for men and long pointed shoes. The longer the points, the higher the status.

• The women's headdresses were also long and pointed. It was also fashionable to wear the high double horn headdresses

• The tunic was narrowed and evolved into the doublet

Medieval Fashion

1350    The man wears a blue tappert with padded shoulders and slashed sleeves.  His hose are particolored white and light blue.  The woman wears a rolled and padded hennin worn over a caul and draped with a veil.  Her surcoat is worn over a brocade cotehardie and lined with fur, as are the dalmation sleeves.  High-waisted gowns became the fashion for the rest of the Medieval period. 

1400    The man wears a red houppeland with dagged dalmation sleeves and a chaperon which is also dagged.   The woman wears a dress with a style very popular in this period.  The neckline forms a deep V to the waistband, with a ruched bib underneath coming up higher to the neckline.  The blue gown is trimmed with red velvet.  This style of gown was often known as a “Burgundian gown.”  She wears a hennin with a butterfly styled veil.

Medieval Fashion

1200    The woman is wearing a black wool surcoat over a pleated chainse, and a porkpie hat over her hair.  This style of a loose, vertical gown was frequent in the earlier Medieval period.  The man is wearing a particolored cotehardie and a surgarloaf hat, all over his hose and leather shoes.

1250    The woman is wearing a pale green cotehardie with a full skirt and sleeves over a maroon chainse.  Belts were often worn as in this picture to hold up the skirts and allow for freer movements.  Low-waisted belts would remain the fashion until the late fourteenth century.  She is also wearing a chatelaine to carry household items.  She wears a gorget and wimple over her hair and neck.  The man wears a fur houppeland with the leather on the outside and a leather belt with another form of a chatelaine.

Medieval Fashion

1450  The man wears a “shockingly” short tunic that became popular in this period.  The feet of his hose are pointed and tipped by bells.  Bells were often used on many garments, especially belts, purses, and shoes.  The woman wears a gown with bag sleeves trimmed in fur.  Her headdress is a more modern version of the toque, worn with a butterfly veil.

1450    The man wears a short pourpoint jacket lined with fur.  His hat is trimmed with a gold coronet.  The woman wears an escoffion with a veil and gold ribbon attached.  Her brocade gown has fur-lined dalmation sleeves.  Jewels and gold were often used to line clothing of the nobility as a means to display wealth. 

Medieval Fashion Glossary

• bliaud — overgown with either long, tight sleeves or looser, elbow-length sleeves

• braies/slops — short pants gathered and tied at the waist and tucked into hose (men)

• butterfly– starching veils and shaping them using wired, worn over headdresses (women)

• caul/snood/crespinette — a net, usually of gold or silver, used to hold up hair, often lined with fabric (women)

• chainse — under-tunic, often belted with leather or cord and worn alone in warm weather

• chaperon — hood covering head and draped over shoulders

• chatelaine — leather pouch or chain hanging from a belt that usually carried household tools, personal items, or coins

• chausses — hose attached at the top (men)

• coif — close-fitting headdress of white linen, cotton or silk that tied under chin, usually worn under other head coverings

• cotehardie — tight-fitting tunic or gown

• cottes historiées — family’s coat of arms emblazoned on garments in embroidery or appliqué

• crackowes/poulaines — soft, pointed shoes, often wooden-soled, sometimes with the toes held up by gold chains attached to the knee if they were long enough

• cyclas — sleeveless tunic worn with or without belt

• dagging — ornamental cutting of fabric edges, applied to all manners of clothing

• dalmation/angel sleeves — large, voluminous sleeves

• escoffion — double-pointed headdress (women)

Medieval Fashion Glossary• gorget — square of fabric draped under chin to cover neck (often accompanying the wimple) (women)

• hennin — high, pointed, conical headdress that imitated the Gothic church spire, often with veils attached to them (women)

• houppelande– long, voluminous coat with sleeves sometimes lined or trimmed with fur• justacorps/pourpoint/jupon — quilted garment similar to a vest or jacket (men)• liripipe — long, trailing point often added to a hood or headdress• mantle — cloak worn over clothes, sometimes lined with fur or with a hood• particolored — garments divided into sections and sewn in contrasting colors• pelicon — fur lined robe, usually made from large piece of fabric with holes cut for the head and slits for

arms• points/tapes — small laces that tied hose up to slops or braies (men)• ruching — pleating or gathering• stomacher — traingular piece extending from neckline to lower abdomen (women)• sugarloaf hat — tall, rounded hat (men)• surcoat/robe — outer tunic• tabard — scoop-necked surcoat often open at the sides (men)• tappert — German coat padded at the shoulders, usually with slashed and cuffed sleeves (men)• toque/porkpie hat — hat with scalloped/pleated edges and an open top, attached by a chinstrap• wimple/headrail/couvre-chef — kerchief draped over head and shoulders or over a cloth cap (women)

Medieval Fashion History

Medieval Inspired Fashion

Medieval Inspired Designs