Roman Clothing

By Julie Petrusa

citizen, matron, curule magistrate, emperor, general, workman, slave

Roman Clothing

Roman paintings, statues and writing all included informationabout clothes. Roman f ashions didn't really change f or nearly athousand years. Most of the clothes which people wore weremade out of wool or linen. I n I mperial times, cloth made out offi ne cotton was imported f rom I ndia but it was very expensive.Silk f rom China cost three times its weight in gold. I n coldclimates f ur and f elt were also used.

Most clothes were made up of large uncut pieces of cloth andthey were f olded and pinned with pins called fi vulate or theywere tied with belts. Clothes with a lot of sewing were rare, asmost needles were made of bone and theref ore very clumsy.Clothes were mainly the natural colors of their fibers, butsome clothes were bleached white or some dyed variousshades.

The Toga

The toga was made f rom white wool or white Egyptian linen. I t was squareor rectangular in shape and was worn draped around the body. Togas werearranged very carefully, in a stylish way.

The salutatio, speeches, solemnities, big festivities, and visits ofimportant people were reasons to wear such an uncomfortable toga. I nthe daily lif e the toga wasn't very important because you couldn't moveeasily in it.

A Roman could tell how important or wealthy a person was f rom theirtoga. Consuls and senators wore a toga edged with purple. When a Romanwas a candidate for one of the many political functions, he was allowed towear a toga candida, an extra white toga. Some emperors' togas weremade entirely f rom either purple or black cloth. Black togas, though,were usually only worn in times of mourning.

The Tunic

The tunic was worn the whole day by proletarians, shopkeepers, buildingworkers etc., because you could move comfortably in this article ofclothing. Sometimes the tunic was also worn under the toga. The tunicwas a simple long shirt with primitive sleeves. Tunics were made of coollinen, f or summer wear, and warm wool, f or winter wear.

(E1) A long-sleeved tunic was put on fi rst and over it (E2) a shorter tunicwith short sleeves. (E3) The outfi t was completed by a cloak fastenedwith a buckle on the right shoulder.

(F) Women's tunics of ten had sleeves fastened with buckles. The overgarment was of ten sleeveless and a cloak would be worn over it. All thesegarments were dyed in diff erent colors, usually quite bright ones.

Men's ClothingA man's underwear was a loincloth and it wasmade of wool or linen. He wore a tunic over itwhich was made f rom two rectanglesstitched at the side and shoulders and tiedwith a belt. Men wore a knee-length tunic,either sleeveless or short-sleeved. Ordinarymen wore tunics in various colors. A tunicwith a purple stripe running down the f rontwas a senator's tunic. Roman men wore a togaover their tunic, which was like a wide shawlthat was draped over the shoulder andcarefully wrapped around the body. A cloakwas worn at night and during winter f orwarmth, and as protection against rain andwind. Outdoors people in rural areas worecloaks and trousers.

Senator - White toga, purple bands and boots Knight - White toga and tunic, purple bands and sandals

Magistrate - White tunic, purple toga, gold embroidery High Rank - White tunic, purple tunic, gold embroidery

Openings for the arms were lef t at the top of the garment, creating an eff ect of short sleeves when the tunic was belted; since tunics were usually not cut in a T-shape, this lef t extra material to drape under the arm, as can be

clearly seen in this statue of a fi rst-century CE orator in tunic and toga.

The back of the toga was pulled over the head for religious ceremonies, as in this statue of Augustus as chief priest.

Most ancient statues do not show these stripes, but this wall painting from a lararium in Pompeii depicts both the tunica laticlavia and toga praetexta.

Sometimes their tunics also left one shoulder uncovered, as depicted in this mosaic of a man named Frucius (whose narrow stripes indicate equestrian rank) being attended by two slaves, Myro and Victor.

Slaves were not inevitably dressed in poor clothing, however; Junius, the young kitchen slave depicted in this mosaic, wears a more elegant tunic and a gold neckchain.

Women's ClothingWomen wore a loincloth as underwear andsometimes for a brassiere or corsets. They worea tunica over it, probably of fine wool or linen.Women wore a tunica which was adapted f romthe Greek chiton. The tunica was usually knee-length. Over this the women wore a stola whichwas a full length f rom neck to ankle, high-waisted and fastened at the shoulders withclasps. The stola was usually either white, brownor grey, though some were brightly colouredwith vegetable dyes. Richer women had brightlycolored stolas made out of silk or fine I ndiancotton. Many women wore a veil or scarf toprotect their hair when they were outside. Ashawl, called a palla, was worn wrapped aroundthe shoulders and arm, or could be draped overher head. Cloaks were worn to keep warm.

Under tunic, stola, palla Under tunic, stola, palla

Purple stola, gold embroidery Young woman - Under tunic stola

depiction of a matron whose elegantly draped palla has a fringe

Statues of the first empress Livia prominently display her stola, even in this one whose head has been lost, a close-up clearly shows the strap of her stola.

 We do not know a great deal about Roman underclothes, but there is evidence that women wore a simple, wrapped

loincloth (subligar or subligaculum, meaning “little binding underneath”) at least some of the time. Women also sometimes wore a band of cloth or leather to support the breasts (strophium or mamillare). Both these

undergarments can be seen on the women from this fourth-century CE mosaic.

Etruscan gold fibula depicting a cat stalking two unsuspecting birds a belt made with coins of f ourth-century CE emperors Constans to Theodosius

Accessories

Footwear

(G-H) The most common form of footwear was the sandal laced acrossthe instep. (I ) Boots like this called a cothurnus or buskin were regardedas divine garments and were supposed to be worn by the gods. Someemperors wore them too. I n the theatre they were associated withtragedy in contrast to the flat soccus worn by comic actors. Some peopleparticularly soldiers and wagoners wore short ankle-length boots(peronis). (J ) Philosophers and people who believed in the simple lif e worelight sandals, of ten made of papyrus, (K) the cartabina, also laced acrossthe top, was worn by peasants.

Sandal, Buskin, Sof t Leather Shoe, Sandal

woman's leather thong-style sandal with a gold ornament, simple workman's shoe

ancient leather shoes on top and modern reconstructions below

Men’s Hairstyles

Men’s hairstyles and beards varied with the times. I n early Roman times,men wore long hair and full beards. For a while, they were clean-shavenwith short hair. About 1cAD, they had started to style their hair, andwear beards again. Wigs were worn by men as a disguise and to hidebaldness.

Hadrian

Women's Hairstyles

Women's hairstyles varied f rom period to period and were of ten very elaborate. Sometimes the hair wasn't thick enough for the current style and then wigs would be worn. (A) This complicated structure of plaits piled on top of the head was worn by young girls on their wedding day. (B) and (C) The "bird's nest" or "diadem" style appeared under the Flavians and lasted a long time with variations. (D) An early hairstyle. Until the middle of the fi rst century, styles remained fairly simple.

various hairstyles

the unusual hairstyle worn by J ulia Domna during the latter half of the second century CE bust of Sabina, wife of emperor Hadrian

side view of Flavian hairstyle rear view of Flavian hairstyle

somewhat less elegant Flavian ladies

J ewelry

Most early Roman jewelry resembled Greek and Etruscan jewelry, butRoman styles eventually developed. The Romans were fond of coloredstones such as topaz, emeralds, rubies and sapphires. Pearls werefavorites. Pendants, especially cameos in gold f rames, were popular.

Rings were the only jewelry worn by Roman citizen men, and good mannersdictated only one ring. Of course, some men did not f ollow "good taste",and wore as many as sixteen rings.

The ancient Roman women loved ornate necklaces, pins, earrings,bracelets and f riendship rings.

Cameo portraits were worn, as in this pendant depicting a married couple.

A representative collection of jewelry f rom the fi rst to the third centuries CE includes earrings, necklaces, pendants, bracelets and rings of gold, gems

(garnets were especially popular), and cameos.

Gold coins (aurei) were often made into jewelry: a pendant with a coin of the empress Julia Domna, a pendant with garnets and a coin of the emperor Caracalla (son of Julia Domna and Septimius Severus).

Silver was used less frequently, as in this medallion with chain or this bracelet with a portrait of a child.

an armband with coins of Caracalla and his wife Plautilla

The portrait of this woman is one of many so-called “mummy portraits” dating f rom Egypt af ter it became a Roman province; these portraits, usually depicting only the f ace and shoulders, present us with strikingly individualized f aces of varying ethnicities, Greco-Roman clothing, adornment, and hairstyles, combined with the quintessentially Egyptian custom of mummifi cation. We know that this woman was named

I sidora, since her name is painted in Greek on the wooden sarcophagus, and her hairstyle dates to the period of the emperor Trajan, the beginning of the second century CE.

Bibliography  

  Akiko G. Kayoko S. and Seung Yeob L. Ancient Rome. March 25, 2001.http://www.internet-at-work.com/hos_mcgrane/rome/eg_rome_menu1.html Lin and Don Donn. Daily Life in Ancient Rome. March 25, 2001.http://members.aol.com/Donnclass/Romelife.html#HAIR McManus, Barbara. Roman Clothing. April 4, 2001. http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/clothing.html Roma, History and Civilization of the Eternal City. March 26, 2001.http://cyberfair.gsn.org/citrag/roma/eng_home.htm Roman Life. March 25, 2001.http://www.dl.ket.org/latin1/things/romanlife/index.htm The daily life in Rome. March 26, 2001. http://library.thinkquest.org/22866/English/Romday/RomDag.html The Romans Page. March 25, 2001. http://ireland.iol.ie/~coolmine/typ/romans/intro.html