Information Pack for Pupils

Studying Textiles at KS4

Produced with the support of the Sharing Museum

Skills Awards and Janet Johnstone

This pack focuses on:Examples of garments and other textiles in the Petrie Museum

How to make replicas of some of the textiles in the Petrie Museum

It will also give you information on the following:Representations of garments on objects

Sewing and decorative techniquesRaw materials and techniques of Egyptian textile manufacture

C o n t e n t s

Introduction: The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology and its Textiles

Section 1 Examples of garments and other textiles in the Petrie MuseumTarkhan dress

Deshasheh dresses

Gurob sleeves

Bag-tunics

Bead-net dress

Beaded headband

Sprang-cap

Socks

Household textiles

Soft toys

Painted shrouds and Mummy wrappings

Section 2 Representations of garments on objects in the Petrie Museum

Section 3 Raw materials and methods of manufacture

Section 4 Sewing and decorative techniques

Appendices:

- Map

- Glossary

- Suggestions for further reading

Introduction –

2

The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology and its Textiles

The Petrie Museum has one of the largest and most inspiring collections of Egyptian

archaeology anywhere in the world. The displays illustrate life in the Nile Valley from

prehistory through Pharaonic to Roman and Islamic times. Most of the objects on display

were excavated or purchased in Egypt by William Flinders Petrie (1853-1942), sometimes

called ‘the father of archaeology’. While other museums contain massive stone sculptures,

monuments and mummies, the Petrie Museum is richest in the personal items that illustrate

life and death in ancient Egypt.

The textiles in the collection include garments, household textiles, mummy-wrappings and

utilitarian textiles such as nets. This pack focuses on the garments and household textiles

and illustrates pieces from the Pharaonic, Roman and Coptic periods.

In addition to the textiles themselves many of the objects in the Museum such as statuettes

or stone reliefs depict garments. We get a very different picture of garments from looking at

these than from the actual examples. There may be several reasons for this. For example,

The garments may be shown in an idealized way rather than as they actually looked.

Artistic conventions may have meant that the artist or craftsman followed certain rules in

depicting textiles just as they did when representing the human form.

For these reasons, this pack uses examples of actual garments from the museum’s

collection where possible. However, when treated with caution, representations of costume

on objects yield a great deal of historical and social information and so a brief outline of the

development of Pharaonic costume has been included as Section III of this resource.

The ‘how to make’ sections are guidelines only (for example, the line drawing patterns are

not to scale), and include such detailed information as the warp and weft count for those

particularly interested in weaving techniques. In general, the garments and techniques

should be viewed as providing inspiration rather than as patterns for direct imitation.

Underlined words are explained in the glossary.

3

Section 1 –

Examples of garments and other textiles in the Petrie Museum

The Tarkhan DressMuseum registration number UC.28614B1

The discovery of the ‘world’s oldest dress’ took place in 1977 when a bundle of dirty funerary

linen was being studied for conservation. The bundle of rags had been collected by Petrie

whilst excavating at the site of Tarkhan, in Egypt in 1911-1913. The rags came from a tomb,

which had been robbed, in ancient times, and the robbers had thrown a pile of linen out of

the burial chamber. The bundle had then become covered in sand, which had helped

preserve the linen. Petrie dated the tomb to the reign of Djet, around 2800BC.

The linen was brought to London with other objects from the excavation and kept in the

Petrie Museum until it was sent for conservation in 1977. The conservator started to sort

through the linen and noticed a seam. She then saw that two other rags were attached to the

first and that they were sleeves. The sleeves even had signs of pleating.

The dress was not in a good condition: it was caked with mud, had many small holes and the

bottom was missing. The dress consists of a skirt joined selvedge to selvedge down the left

hand side with a weft fringe. The sleeves and yoke are made of two pieces of material joined

to the top of the skirt which meet at the centre front and back giving a v-shaped neckline

edged with selvedge. The fabric has an

irregular grey stripe as decoration and the

sleeves have fine pleating.

The tunic was found inside-out as though it

had just been pulled off. It was also creased

around the armpits and elbows, showing that

it had definitely been worn. The size of the

dress suggests a young teenager had worn it.

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How to make the Tarkhan dress

Fabric100% Linen (only pure linen will hand pleat successfully)

22-23 warp threads per cm (with two threads together in some places), 13-14 weft threads

per cm.

Body: Width 76cm selvedge to selvedge. Length unknown.

Sleeves: Length neck edge (selvedge) to wrist c.58cm. Length over shoulder c.35cm. (The

measurements refer to the size of the material after pleating).

1. Cut a paper pattern using Diagram 2 as a reference. Add seam allowance. Pin pattern

Diagram 1. Bodice and sleeve. Finished measurements

to linen, mark and cut out.

2. Hand pleat the two bodice sections by first dampening with water. Lay one section down

on a table or flat surface and starting with the long straight edge (A-B) fold over 1cm and

press the folded edge flat. Using this first pleat as a guideline pleat the rest of the fabric

on top of it creating 1cm wide accordion pleating. Weight the pleating down if necessary

and dry in a warm place.

3. When dry, hand-roll and whip stitch the cut edges of the bodice and sleeves. (See

section on sewing techniques.)

4. To make the sleeve. Whip stitch the angled edge of the sleeve to a fold 38mm from the

straight edge and fringe the warp threads. Turn inside out. The excess fabric is inside the

finished sleeve.

5. Hand-roll and whip stitch the cut edges of the skirt. Seam the two selvedges together by

overlapping the right selvedge (this can be fringed) over the left and sew as Diagram 3.

This forms the left-hand side seam.

6. Mark the centre front, back and sides on the top edge of the skirt and match the

corresponding points on the bodice. Attach the rolled edge of the bodice to the top of the

skirt with whip-stitching.

5

6

A

47.5cm

58cm

76cm

skirt

Diagram 2. Pattern measurements for pleating bodice.

28cm

B

19cm

Bodice and sleeve

A

Diagram 3. Flat overlapped seam

The Deshasheh DressesMuseum registration numbers UC.31182 & UC.31183

Petrie mentions large quantities of linen in the reports of his excavations at Deshasheh in

Egypt during 1897 - 1898. The linen was found in tombs dating to the Fifth Dynasty (about

2,400BC). One grave, 148b, contained a coffin with, in addition to the remains of a female

body, nine dresses. Two were brought to London by Petrie and they were rediscovered in

1978 during the sorting of linen in the Museum.

Petrie had labelled one of them ‘Galabiyeh’ which is the term used in modern Egypt to

denote the popular garment of this shape. The dresses have skirts from the high waists to

the feet with weft fringes at the left-hand seam. One piece of linen forms the skirt, joined

selvedge to selvedge. There are rolled hems on the bottom and the wrists. Two pieces of

material form the bodice and sleeves. The V-shaped necks formed by the top of the sleeves

were originally closed by 3 pairs of twisted flax ties. Dress UC.31183 has natural crimping: a

solid stripe was woven next to a looser stripe. When the fabric dried after washing this would

force a turn in an ‘S’ direction, giving the impression of a slight pleat.

The dresses are both very long, causing some people to speculate that they may have been

pleated horizontally. But these particular dresses

are also very narrow, and it may be that these

examples were not made to be worn in life but

were spare clothing for the afterlife. Horizontal

pleating is known from other garments, such as a

group of dresses from a Sixth dynasty burial

which is now in the Museum of Fine Arts in

Boston.

Diagram to show the natural crimping in the weave

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How to make a Deshasheh dress

FabricLinen: 8 weft threads per cm, 26 warp threads per cm (16 warps threads in a thick stripe

alternate with 2 warp threads)

Six pairs of twisted flax ties

Body: Length 132cm, width 101cm selvedge to selvedge

Sleeves: Length 72cm, width at wrist 23cm, width at neck 50cm (selvedge), length neck

edge to underarm 20cm.

The Deshasheh dresses are constructed in a similar method to the Tarkhan dress

1. Cut a paper pattern using Diagram 1.as a reference. Add seam allowance.

Pin pattern to linen, mark and cut out.

2. Sew the underarm seam using either a flat-fell seam, a flat over-lapped seam or whip

stitch the hand-rolled edges together. The original sleeves were finished with an underarm

seam similar to the Tarkhan dress.

3. Hand-roll and whip stitch the cut edges of the bodice and sleeves. (See section on

sewing techniques.)

4. Hand-roll and whip stitch the cut edges of the skirt. Seam the two selvedges together by

overlapping the right selvedge (this can be fringed) over the left and sew as Diagram 2. This

forms the left-hand side seam.

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5. Mark the centre front, back and sides on the top edge of the skirt and match the

corresponding points on the bodice. Attach the rolled edge of the bodice to the top of the

skirt with whip stitching.

6. To make the twisted thread ties. Cut 6 lengths of thread for 6 ties, they need to be twice

as long as required and twist each tightly until they twist back on themselves. Knot the two

loose ends together. Sew them onto the front of the bodice along the neck edge to keep the

dress from slipping off.

The Gurob SleevesMuseum Registration number UC.8960A & B

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Diagram 2. Flat overlapped seam

The sleeves were discovered during Petrie’s 1888-1889 excavations at Gurob. They were in

the sand filling of Tomb 25 which contained the body of a young man and which dates to

around 1320BC. However, the size of the sleeves suggests that they were made for a child.

The sleeves are in excellent condition and had never been worn. The type of seam (flat-fell -

see diagram in section on sewing methods) used in manufacture is in keeping with the

suggestion that they were for a child: it would have coped with a lot of wear and tear!

Sleeves are listed as separate items in laundry lists. It appears that they were made

separately and then attached to the dress when necessary, giving a flexibility to the design

according to need.

How to make the Gurob sleeves

10

FabricLinen: 21 weft threads per cm and 47 warp threads per cm.

Length 41cm, width 13cm

(Actual measurements: Sleeve A: Length 41.1cm, width 12.8cm

Sleeve B: Length 40.8 cm, width 13.0cm.)

1. Cut a paper pattern using the diagram below as a reference. Add seam allowance. Pin

pattern to linen, mark and cut out.

2. Sew up the underarm seam with a flat-fell seam.

3. Hand-roll and whip stitch around the wrist and the top of the sleeve.

4. Whip stitch the sleeve head into the armhole of a mss (bag-shirt) or dress.

11

41.1cm

12cm25.6cm

Sleeve pattern for the Gurob sleeve.

Bag-tunicsMuseum registration numbers UC.28616C1 and 2

The Petrie Museum contains two mss (bag-shirts) from the cemetery at Tarkhan. They date

from around 800BC.

The word mss is the ancient Egyptian name for this type of garment. It is repeatedly

mentioned in laundry lists and documentation regarding clothing as part payment for

workers. The mss is made by folding a rectangle of cloth in half across the width and

stitching the side seams, leaving a gap big enough for the arms to go through. Sleeves could

be attached if required. Usually a keyhole-shaped neck opening was made for the head and

finished with hand rolling or hemming. The opening was tied with cords. The mss was worn

either short or long finishing at the knee or the ankle.

Mss were worn in the Middle Kingdom but were fully utilized as a universal garment worn by

men, women and children in the New Kingdom. It became the principal garment in Graeco-

Roman Egypt and often had tapestry motifs in linen and wool. Some of the later examples

were woven on a very wide loom (examples exist up to 240 cm wide) where the width of the

mss was the warp and the length was the weft. The bottom hem was selvedge, and the

vertical slit neck opening was often finished with a selvedge on the loom.

The nature of the design meant thick folds formed under the armpits, and so it is interesting

that a tunic in the Petrie Museum (UC.28616C ) has what appears to be couching on the

front and back of the neck and shoulder-line. This may have made the garment less bulky

around the arm, but it is also possible that it was a means of strengthening areas of the

garment subject to heavy wear. The couching takes the form of additional flax threads being

laid on the surface in the weft direction and couched across the warp threads.

12

UC 28616C2 Detail of the couched yoke.

How to make a bag-tunic

Fabric: Linen

Width of fabric selvedge to selvedge 102cm, length 92cm, neck opening 38cm long, 3cm

wide.

1. Cut the fabric to the measurements above plus seam allowance.

2. Fold the fabric in half. Sew up the side seams to within 16-20cm of the fold leaving a gap

for the arms to go through.

3. Mark the centre of the fold for the neck opening and cut carefully down the grain 19cm in

the front and 19cm in the back (38cm total).

4. Hand-roll and whip stitch the raw edges of the neck opening.

5. Neaten the hem either by fringing the warp threads or sewing a hem.

6. Add your own decoration with embroidery, beading or a printed design. UC28616c1 has

large areas of couching on the shoulders and around the neck opening. Experiment with a

different thickness of thread for a decorative effect. Try couching crochet cotton or wool with

a finer thread in a different colour for a more individual look.

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102cmweft

92cmwarp

5cm fringe oftwisted warp threads

Neck opening 3cm wide, 38cm long

Diagram 1.Pattern measurements for UC 28616c1 mss with couched work

There are a number of different ways of making a neck opening for a mss (bag-shirt).

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Diagram 2. Two different forms of couching.

The Bead-net DressMuseum registration number UC.17743

A bead-net dress, one of only two to survive to date, was discovered by Guy Brunton, one of

Petrie’s students, in the 1923-24 season of excavation at Qau in Egypt. It came from a grave

which had been robbed, but which still contained a box with the collapsed dress inside. The

burial dated to around 2400BC.

The 3,000 beads were glazed and were either cylinder-shaped or large and small discs.

They were coloured green, blue, turquoise, black, brown and cream. There were also two

breast caps of blue faience and 127 mitra shells.

Some of the beads were re-strung in the 1960s, but in 1994 the beads were sent to the

Textile Conservation Centre to be studied for re-threading. The re-threading was planned

using macaroni and a computer. 1,500 of the beads were laid out according to the new plan.

It was decided to re-thread only half of the dress because of the condition of some of the

beads and also to lessen the weight of the dress when displayed vertically. The beads were

re-strung in horizontal rows, linking each line to the previous one by passing the thread

through the small round beads. The shells, which were plugged

with tiny stones to give extra weight, were arranged in a fringe at

the hem of the dress.

Scholars have suggested that the dress was worn by a girl of about

thirteen, perhaps for dancing, or it may have been a type of court

dress.

15

How to make a bead-net dress

FabricBeads (cylinder beads 1.5 to 3cm long and round beads)

Shells drilled with holes for threading (optional)

Strong polyester thread natural or cream and a long needle

Cylinder beads may be difficult to find so use your imagination to think of an alternative. Here are some

suggestions:

1. Drinking straws cut to size.

2. Make your own beads from modeling clay such as Fimo or Sculpey.

3. A bamboo bead curtain for hanging across a doorway provides a good economical source of cylinder beads.

Carefully dismantle it and saw the lengths of bamboo to the correct size cylinder beads. Some bead curtains are

already painted with scenes so just group the colours together for your beadnet design.

4. A good place to look for beads and buy them cheaply in bulk is the Bead Shop, Covent Garden, London or

mail order from www.beadshop.co.uk.

5. Shells for the fringe. Rather than attempt to drill holes into bought shells, look for shell necklaces or flowerpot

hangers in your local charity shop. The shells are ready to use and someone else has drilled the holes for you.

Make a plan on paper of the beading design. Calculate the number of beads you will need

and their position.

1. The dress can be made either as a tube or alternatively worked on flat and sewn up when

it is completed with an opening down the centre back to achieve a better fit. Start with the

band of vertical beads that goes under the breasts. Take a measurement around the chest

below the breasts and add on extra to ensure that the tube dress can be pulled off over the

head and shoulders. The skirt and shoulder straps are attached to it. Using 2 needles and

one thread (thread a needle on to either end of the thread) sew the beads together as

diagram 1. Use the longest length of double polyester thread you can manage (2 –3 metres).

If you run out of thread before you finish tie another length on using a surgeon’s knot. When

you have completed the band knot off the two ends together with a surgeon’s knot.

2. For extra strength sew the beaded band onto a strong petersham band that has been

covered with white fabric (linen preferably).

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Needle one

Needle two

Diagram 1. Threading sequence for band

3. To make the skirt. Sew the first row of cylinder beads interspaced with round beads.

4. Using one needle and a double thread (as long as possible) thread on one round bead,

one cylinder bead and one round bead. Attach this to the vertical beaded band by running

up one vertical bead and down its neighbour and come through the top round bead. Make a

knot to hold this pattern in place and thread on one cylinder bead, one round bead, one

cylinder bead and one round bead. Measure along the vertical beaded band or count them

and run the thread up a vertical bead and down its neighbour and back through the top

round bead like before. Knot the thread to hold this pattern in place and remember to pull the

thread tightly as you go.

5. The second row and subsequent rows are made using the same method as the first but

attach the new row through the bottom row of round beads as shown Diagram 2 and knot as

you go.

6. The shell fringe. Thread the shells and alternate with one or more tiny beads on to a

double thread and attach to the last row of the dress.

7. The straps are made in the same way as the dress. You may find it easier to use shorter

cylinder beads and pin the first row of beads to a corkboard or sheet of thick polystyrene to

keep the work under tension and straight. Make up two individual straps and sew each to

the top edge of the band of vertical cylinder beads at the front and the back.

8. To store your dress. Lay it flat in a box. Remember not to sit down when you wear the

beadnet dress or the beads will break.

Diagram 3. Threading sequence for shell

Fringe on hem

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Diagram 2. Threading pattern for dress

1st row

2nd row

Beaded HeadbandMuseum registration number UC.16355

Three small fragments of linen, two of which were decorated with carnelian beads, were

discovered by Petrie in a tomb at Tarkhan in 1912. The fragments appear to have come from

the same object which originally formed a band. The band was a single narrow length of

cloth, folded selvedge to selvedge, with the fold line in the warp direction. The beads were

attached with linen thread in groups of four or five.

When studied for conservation in 1994, a louse was discovered in the fabric. This was the

type of louse that lives on humans and it was a head rather than a body louse. Furthermore,

there were hairs attached to the band, and the intact end was twisted, as though it had been

tied. This evidence suggests that the band was probably a headband.

How to make a beaded headband18

FabricLinen: 17 weft threads per cm, 24 warp threads per cm

Thread

Carnelian beads

Width: 15.5cm selvedge to selvedge

Length: Unknown

1. Cut a length of cloth long enough to go round the head and tie at the back.

2. Fold the cloth in half lengthways.

3. Using a running stitch, thread four beads onto the cloth at a time, sewing through both

pieces of cloth.

4. Hem the raw edges if you wish.

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Diagram 1. Construction of linen headband.

Back of headband

10cm

5cm seam allowance foldedover and slip stitched

Sprang-capMuseum registration number UC.28073

Sprang is the name given to a stretch fabric made by twisting threads. No weft thread is

used, but vertical warp threads are twisted whilst they are stretched at both ends. The

technique of sprang dates back to the Bronze Age in Greece and Scandinavia, but most of

the pieces in museums come from Coptic Egypt. Sprang is still made today in several parts

of the world.

The example in the Petrie Museum was excavated by Petrie at Hawara in Egypt in 1888-9 or

1911 and dates from the Roman period. The cap is still on the naturally dried head of a

woman of around 50 years old and covers the eyes and nose of the face. It is likely that the

body of the woman, when buried, was preserved with salt which would cause the soft tissue

to dry on the bones. Petrie recorded the find as ‘332. Head, female, skin dried yellow, with

blue and white knitted woollen cap drawn over the face. Roman. Hawara.’

The cap was originally brightly-coloured: the wool

used to make it was dyed violet, blue and red, and it

was also decorated with braids.

sprang cap

UC.28073

A sprang cap on a vase in the

British Museum.

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Key to diagram: A = Sprang B = Yellow braided twining C = Green cord D = Red cord

E = Yellow nine. Strand braidF = Green / red / yellow cordG = Green / red / yellow cord

H = Meeting pointI = Warp loops

How to make a sprang-cap

FabricWool: 2-ply yarn with a diameter of 1mm.

Braided or plaited wool

Cap: rectangle of sprang, 32cm by 64cm.

Braids: 65cm long, varying widths. You could plait wool to make these, or buy them.

Cord: length unknown - but any thick wool will do, or you could buy cord.

1. Interlink the wool to form the sprang by

following the charts given. You will need to

use a small weaving frame in order to do this.

2. Fold the rectangle of sprang at the horizontal

centre and whip-stitch the sides together to

form a bag shape.

3. Sew a line 1.5cm in from the fold to

form a tube.

4. Thread a cord through the tube (this cord will be used to

tighten the end of the cap and then to secure it to the

head by bringing the cords into the neck and then

passing them around the head, securing them over the

top of the forehead).

5. Stitch the braids and plaits to the cap as shown.

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Finish off like this

SocksMuseum registration numbers UC.16766 and UC.16767

The socks (not a pair) were excavated by Petrie at cemetery at Hawara and they date to the

Roman period. One was found in a tomb with other objects including embroidered textiles.

They are made of reddish-brown wool which is knitted in sections and then joined. The big

toe is shaped separately and means that the socks could be worn with thonged sandals.

Sock UC16767 was discovered inside out. This suggests that the sock had been worn just

before the person died.

The technique used to make the sock is a form of knitting known as ‘crossed loop knitting’.

This uses quite short lengths of thread and only one needle. The technique is shown in the

diagram below.

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Household textiles

There are several fragments of household textiles in the Petrie Museum. One of the most

interesting is the ‘candlewick coverlet’ (Museum registration number UC.38055).

In 1983 the Petrie Museum acquired several textile fragments which had originally been

excavated in 1880 from a First Dynasty tomb. The fabric is made up of ‘basket weave’ and

the threads of both the warp and the weft are grouped in threes. The weft threads are pulled

out to form loops, rather like the effect known today as ‘candlewick’. This looping would

provide additional warmth and padding if the fabric was used as a coverlet, but the fragment

is too small to know for certain what its function was.

Diagram of the weave

The loops are shown broken off,

but actually they would overlap

two or three rows

23

Soft toys in the Petrie Museum

Rag dollMuseum registration number UC.28024

Although there are examples of rag dolls from Egypt dating back at least to around 2000BC,

we do not know if these were meant to be toys or were in fact ritual objects; for example,

they may have been used in fertility rites.

Many scholars think that toys were made for children’s play in the Roman period. In 1888

Petrie excavated a doll with some clothes at Hawara. The doll was from a child’s grave

dating to the 4th century AD. There were other miniature objects in the child’s grave too.

The doll is made of linen and stuffed with rushes. The eyes and eyebrows are painted black.

She has real brown hair which is styled and plaited. The right arm is now detached, but the

left arm is jointed at the shoulder. The legs have been cut off at the thighs. Red wool is sewn

on to mark parts of the body such as nipples and groin. The linen is seamed at the back.

The doll was wearing a tunic when Petrie found it,

but this is now lost. A bundle of linen and wool

fragments was with the doll, but all of these were in

a fragmentary state (UC.28030). There is one of

linen and the rest are of wool .The linen fabric is

decorated with red wool stitching. The wool

fragments are: two red (one with yellow tassels), one

light green, one dark green, and one purple and

blue. On some of the fragments it is possible to

make out rolled hems, whip-stitching and selvedges.

The stitching is quite crude and it is possible that the

child made these clothes for the doll to wear.

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Mummy wrappings and painted linen shrouds

The Ancient Egyptian belief in the afterlife made it important to preserve the body as well as

possible after death.

There were different methods of preserving the body by embalming, but all methods involved

the use of linen to wrap the body. The body would be wrapped in bandage-like strips of linen

and then encased in a linen shroud before being put in a sarcophagus or tomb.

In the earlier periods, the strips of linen were torn from larger pieces used in the household,

for example sheets. The Graeco-Roman period saw very elaborate wrappings which were

often made and dyed specially. Painted linen, rather than plain, shrouds became popular

from the Ptolemaic period.

The Petrie Museum has many examples

of strips of mummy wrappings, and

some painted linen shrouds, including

the one shown here (UC.63209).

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Section 2 –

Representations of garments on objects in the Petrie Museum

As outlined at the beginning of this pack, there is a massive difference in how costume looks

when it is represented in Egyptian art and the actual surviving examples of textiles. This

section traces the development of Egyptian costume as it appears on objects, and focuses

on those in the Petrie Museum.

The costumes are shown as

becoming increasingly elaborate,

especially those worn by men. As far

back as the old Kingdom men wore a

‘kilt’. This was a rectangular piece of

material which was worn around the

hips. It was secured around the torso

by a variety of methods - simply tying

the upper corners together, with

attached ties, or overlapped round

and secured with a length of cloth.

The kilt was often pleated.

Sometimes the lower edge of the kilt extended and is depicted as a rigid triangular

projection. It may be that different types were worn by different classes of men. In the

Middle Kingdom the kilt was often worn under a longer, transparent skirt, which could also

be pleated. The skirt came to halfway down the calf and hung lower in front. High-waisted

kilts were also in fashion for a time. Sometimes men wore more than one kilt at once.

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UC.14638 Fragment of a statue wearing a kilt

Cloaks came into use in the Middle Kingdom. They were worn over one or both shoulders,

giving the impression of being wrapped in a blanket.

UC.14880 Fragment of a statue

wearing a patterned cloak

UC.14632 Fragment of a statue wearing

a bag tunic with a kilt over the top:

the top of the kilt is just visible

Long garments were worn by both men and women and these were fastened by ties on the

shoulder. The Middle and New kingdom saw the wearing of bag-tunics for men, but still worn

with a kilt. By the later 18th Dynasty the tunic stretched to the ankles and could be worn with

an apron-like sash formed from a second pleated piece of material which was wrapped

around the backside and tied in the front. This piece was often fringed and during the

Ramesside period this was loosely tucked up to reveal the under-skirt.

27

From the Old Kingdom onwards women wore a plain sheath dress which reached from the

breast to the ankles with shoulder straps. Women’s cloaks sometimes have one or both

shoulders starched to a point. In the New Kingdom the bag-tunic was worn, with the possible

addition of a striped transparent shawl at banquets. By the mid-18th dynasty the sheath

dresses and occasional bag-tunics had given way to very elaborate transparent dresses

which were voluminous and nearly always pleated.

A long rectangular piece of cloth was wound round around the body and draped over the

shoulders, with the two weft fringes hanging down the front.

Possible method of wrapping a dress

(drawing after Bruèyre, 1937)

This costume was also worn by priests who are often depicted with a short sash over one

shoulder and with a ceremonial leopardskin garment which was worn over the clothes

draped under one arm and fastened on the opposite shoulder.

As clothing for the priesthood shows, it is possible to differentiate between costumes worn

for different occasions and for various occupations. Royal dress clearly needed to be

different. In the Old Kingdom the Pharaoh wore a corselet, kilt and girdle, but by the

Ramesside period the kilt had become very elaborate with a large apron and decoration.

The corselet was replaced by a short sleeved ‘king’s jacket’ with a falcon motif and narrow

strips which wound around the body. A headcloth was also worn which was coloured - either

dyed or worked in tapestry, and ribbons were attached to wigs and crowns.

The Queen wore a decorated girdle with beadwork or woven decoration. Woven coloured

patterns are rare and it may be that they were reserved for the Royal household.

Male deities are depicted wearing a corselet and kilt whilst females most often wear red or

blue sheath dresses.

Dress for different occupations28

Followers of Rameses II wore a military style uniform.

Overseers and scribes had a long tunic which showed the underskirt.

Labourers wore kilts or loincloths for very dirty work or sometimes only a body sash,

perhaps to catch sweat.

lab

our

e

r

with a kilt and sash

brickmaker in a loincloth

29

overseer in a long tunic and underskirt

Section 3 –

Raw materials and methods of manufacture

There is evidence in Egypt for the production of textiles as far back as the 6 th millennium BC:

flax seeds, bone needles, and stone and pottery whorls have been found. Most of the

textiles found in Ancient Egypt are made of flax, but there are some examples of wool dating

back to the 2nd millennium BC. Flax is used to make linen. Egyptian linen had a wide

reputation: it is mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel in the Bible, and the Greek author

Herodotus writing in the 5thc BC tells us that linen was the principal raw material for cloth.

Herodotus also states that wool was not used because of religious reasons (there was a

concern that some of the wool fibres would fall off and pollute the sacred space of the

temple); however wool was certainly used for cloaks and it did become more popular over

time. Cotton and silk were also introduced at this time. Grass, reed and hemp were also

occasionally used in various periods but were not common. Mohair is found from the 7 th

century AD.

The flax was harvested at different times depending on what it was going to be used for.

The younger green stems were used for very fine thread, the yellow stronger fibres made

good linen cloth, and the ripe flax would make ropes and mats. The flax was harvested by

pulling and was then drawn through a comb-like tool. Next it would be soaked to separate

the woody parts from the bast fibres which were then beaten and scraped to remove bits of

stem and combed out. After this they were ready to be roved. Roving is a process which

involves rolling the fibres along the thigh. The threads were wound onto reels and placed in

‘tension bowls’. Originally spinning and weaving was women’s work but later this was done

by men, women and children. A wooden spindle was used, weighted with a whorl.

Wooden spindles

UC.7306I and UC.7809

and Copper needle

UC.36154

30

Two or more weak threads were often twisted together in the opposite direction to the one in

which they would be spun: this produced plied thread. Egyptian flax was usually plied to the

left.

Wool was at first simply pulled from the sheep’s fleece, but shearing was introduced in the

Roman period. Cotton was plucked from the plant. Wool and cotton were then spun in the

same way as flax.

Usually linen was not dyed, since Egypt did not produce a suitable fixer or mordant to

produce soft colours, but some was certainly painted from predynastic times onwards.

Organic (vegetable) or mineral pigments were used; some dyes are listed here:

Blue was obtained from indigotin (either indigo or woad).

Red was usually from a plant called madder, but some inorganic pigment was also used

(perhaps ochreous earth).

Yellow was from the safflower and iron buff.

Green was obtained from double dyeing indigotin and a yellow in the Coptic period.

Purple was from indigotin and madder. This combination also produced brown.

Dyeing needs both a dye and a fixer. The most common fixer in the ancient world was ‘alum’

which was mined in the Libyan desert, but there are no certain examples of this being used

in Egypt. Fast colours were a problem and this obviously limited the production of patterned

fabric. The Romans introduced new bleaching and dyeing methods.

Three different spinning techniques are known from reliefs: the ‘supported spindle’ which

was held on the thigh; the ‘grasped spindle’ held between the palms of the hands; and the

‘suspended spindle’.

Spinning techniques from a tomb at Beni Hassan

31

The earliest looms were horizontal and pegged to the ground. They were frameless. A

drawing of one is shown on a pottery dish from the predynastic period now in the Petrie

Museum, and this is probably the first representation of a loom to survive.

Vertical framed looms were used from the early New Kingdom. With a vertical loom, an odd

number of threads were tied to the ‘heddle’ rod and raised. This created a space through

which the weft passed. Then a flat rod was turned on edge to make a space for the weft to

return. Then a ‘beater-in’ pushed the wefts close together. The flax was usually woven into

a plain tabby, but with a great variety of thickness and texture.

grasped spindle techniques and vertical looms

(drawing after Davies, 1929)

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The texture ranged from a gauze (200 threads to one inch) to a canvas-like material. There

were a number of different qualities of linen: ‘royal linen’, ‘fine thin cloth’, thin cloth’ and

‘smooth (or ordinary) cloth’ are all mentioned in the sources. Cloth was woven in small

homes, on large estates, in temples and in royal and state workshops and could be bartered

by professionals.

There is some evidence that the palace for royal women and children trained and supervised

textile workers, and even those employed by the state could work at home. All Egyptian

temples had weaving workshops, and in the Christian period this practice persisted, with

monasteries having workshops too. In the Roman period trade guilds dealt with large

government orders.

The linen was finished by being washed. The finer types were bleached, sun-dried and

polished. In later times saffron was sometimes added as this acted as an insecticide.

Linen was used for bedding, towels, and wall-hangings for the home. It was also used for

costume and mummification. Knitted socks were popular in Roman Egypt. In the Coptic

period tapestries used to decorate the walls of rich people’s homes.

Often the fabric was left plain, but the decoration could be in the weave. Edges and

selvedges could be fringed, or a weave could include a ‘pile’ - this was popular for towels.

Tapestry was used sometimes. Pleating is the most famous Egyptian decorative technique.

two types of selvedge fringes

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Section 4 –

Sewing and Decorative Techniques

Sewing Equipment: Metal scissors or knives were used to cut the cloth. Needles and

bodkins have been found made from wood, bone, copper, bronze, gold and silver. Most are

larger and thicker than modern types of needle. Metal pins have also been discovered.

Needles could be stored in bone cases. Reels for thread have survived made from wood,

limestone, pottery and faience.

Sewing Methods: Seams and hems were usually rolled and then held by whipping stitches,

but other methods are also used. For instance sleeves which needed to take a lot of wear

and tear (such as the seams down children’s sleeves) could be sewn with the ‘run and fell’

seam. Coptic textiles also used blanket stitch on hems.

whip-stitching flat-fell seam

Pleating: Pleating was done whilst the cloth was damp and inside out. Some surviving

garments show that the pleats could be secured at the side by sewing them into the seam.

The pleats would then be repinched after washing. There is still discussion about pleating

methods - for instance wooden boards with grooves have been discovered which may have

had linen pressed into them whilst wet. Others favour a finger method. Of course, the two

techniques may have existed side by side.

pleating board from Museo Egizio, Turin

(drawing after Pedrini, 1989:84 fig 3)

34

Embroidery: This is a rare technique, though some examples do exist, notably the garments

found in Tutankhamun’s tomb, and it is thought that these may have been worked by non-

Egyptians. Tutankhamun was a pharaoh of the 18th dynasty, the period of maximum luxury

in ancient Egyptian history. During this time contacts with Western Asia were intense and

letters to and from this area mention plenty of textiles.

Embroidery was more common in the Coptic period with the use of a simple satin stitch as

an area-filler. Sometimes laundry marks were embroidered onto garments for identification.

Beading: Beads could be stitched onto cloth, or entire garments were occasionally made

from beads.

35

Map of Egypt with relevant places marked

36

Glossary

basket weave: a weave in which the warp and wefts are threaded in multiples (usually twos

or threes)

bast: the soft fibres of flax which are used for making linen

braids: decorative narrow bands of textiles, sometimes plaited

couching: the sewing down of a thread when it is placed onto a piece of cloth.

corselet: a garment worn over the chest and back

flat-fell: a seam in which the loose edges of cloth are stitched back onto the fabric.

flax: the plant from which linen is made.

galabiyeh: a garment worn in Egypt today. It is a simple tunic with a neck opening and long

sleeves.

headcloth: a textile tied around or worn over the head

pile: woven threads left loose to hang from a fabric

selvedge: the edge of a textile at the sides made by turning the weft back.

spindle: a long thin wooden object using in spinning the fibres into thread

sprang: a stretch fabric made using only warp threads. The threads are twisted to form the

fabric.

warp: the threads which are stretched vertically (or from top to bottom) of the loom

weft: the threads which run horizontally (or from side to side) on the loom.

whip-stitch: overstitching two pieces of material to join a seam.

whorl: a weight usually attached to the body of the spindle to help with spinning

37

Suggestions for Further Reading

If you would like to find out more about ancient Egyptian clothing and textiles, either visit our

website (www.petrie.ucl.uk) or read “Egyptian Textiles”, by Rosalind Hall, available at the

Museum Bookshop.

You can also email Janet Johnstone, the Egyptology Clothing Consultant who helped us

creating this School Pack (jjohnstoneecho@hotmail.com).

Hall, R. Egyptian Textiles, Shire Egyptology, 1986

Hall, R. Garments in the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, 1982

Harris, J. 5000 Years of Textiles, BMP, 1993

Vogelsang-Eastwood, G. Pharaonic Egyptian Clothing, Brill, 1993

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