Ancient Rome, the abode of powerful rulers and brave military leaders. All the richness of ancient Roman culture could not help but be reflected in the clothes of this people. There are two main stages in the development of Roman costume: republican and imperial. The clothing of the ancient Romans of the republican stage is characterized by rigor and functionality, while the imperial one, on the contrary, focuses on the attitude of the owner of the clothing to a particular class. The imperial stage represented a greater variety and splendor of attire.
The costume of the ancient Romans was not very diverse. Basic items of clothing were the same even between segments of the population. Both the poor man and the rich man wore almost the same thing. The main difference was in the materials and additional decorations. The clothing of men and women was also similar, but there were several distinctive features.
Male
The first and main piece of clothing of the ancient Roman was the tunic. In those days, it was considered to be underwear, over which the main garment was worn. A tunic is an item worn over the head.
There were three main types of this attire:
- Colobium;
- Talaris;
- Dalmatica.
The colobium tunic featured short sleeves and a belt included. Talaris, on the other hand, had long sleeves. This type of tunic was worn by people of high position. Dalmatics are considered to be the clothing of the first Roman Christians. It is a tunic with long wide sleeves, which when unfolded resembles a cross.
What other clothes did ancient Roman men wear?
- Toga - she was the main representative of outerwear. This is a large long cape worn over a tunic. The size of this piece of clothing was truly impressive: approximately 6 m of material by 1.8 m. The toga was a garment that embodied the national dignity of the Romans. They often called themselves “the people dressed in togas.” Only true Romans who were pure before the law could wear a toga. Foreigners, slaves and criminals had no right to wear it;
- Semi-damentum - this type of cloak could only be worn by emperors and noble people. It was draped over the back and secured with a special buckle on the right shoulder;
- Lacerna is a cloak that covers the back and shoulders. It was worn for special occasions. It was attached to the front in the middle. Lacerna was made from expensive and beautiful materials and was available only to the highest nobility;
- Penula - considered a lower class cloak. It was made of wool or leather, very often complemented by a hood. The penula was mainly used by travelers and shepherds. For the nobility, a penula made of more expensive materials was provided.
Beginning in the 3rd century AD, trousers came into use among the Romans. They were not very popular and were worn only by soldiers.
The military attire had some specific features. The soldiers wore short woolen cloaks called sagum. Armor was a mandatory element of a military suit. Special protective armor consisted of two parts - front and back - connected by belts and fasteners. Sometimes the hands were also protected with special devices made of metal or leather. On their legs, soldiers wore metal leggings secured with belts.
Legionnaires' footwear was kaligi - protected boots. To protect their heads, soldiers wore metal or leather helmets. Depending on the position of the warrior and his rank, they were decorated with carvings, as well as feathers and horsehair. Semi-damentum 
Lacerna 
Toga 
Penula
Female
Women's clothing in Ancient Rome was similar to men's. Women wore tunics under their main clothes. There were both sleeveless and sleeved robes. Representatives of the nobility wore stola from above. This is a garment very similar to a tunic, however, it differs in various decorations and frills. The stola was an integral item of clothing for women who were married. Appearing in public places without a table was considered bad manners.
Another piece of outerwear was a woman's cloak - palla. It was secured to the body with clasps in the shoulders, which were also called agraphs. Some varieties of this cloak included covering the head.
Fabrics
The Romans most often used woolen fabrics to make clothing. However, some items could also be made from leather. Linen was also a very common material. Noble people could afford light silk robes. The famous Kos silk caused a storm of emotions among the Romans. Someone condemned wearing clothes made of this material, as it seemed too revealing. Someone, on the contrary, did not spare any money on this product. However, as soon as Chinese silk was brought to the Empire, it immediately surpassed all competitors. Despite its high cost, this material was in great demand. For a long time, due to the shortage of pure silk, “half-silk” materials were common. They were made by weaving flax or wool threads into silk. It was only by the 3rd century AD that the Romans had virtually unlimited access to pure silk. It was from this that they began to make clothes for noble and influential people.
Colors
The ancient Roman style of clothing included the use of bright colors: red, lilac, yellow. The color of clothing was assigned a special meaning. In particular, red, being the personification of power, accompanied all emperors and rulers. Triumphant commanders also wore red robes. The association of red with power is no coincidence. At that time, dyeing fabric purple was a labor-intensive and difficult process. Accordingly, a wardrobe of similar colors became very expensive. White was a festive color, and white clothes were worn only on rare occasions.
Ornament
The clothing of the Empire, especially among the nobility, was often decorated with various ornaments. The leaves of plants such as oak, laurel or acanthus were mostly depicted. Also favorite elements were ears of corn, figures of people and animals, skulls and various mythologies. It was often possible to notice images of military trophies and vases on clothing.
Along with aesthetic functions, ornamentation also carried a certain meaning. The robes of antiquity hid information about the deities and spirits that the owner of the item revered. And if at first the originality of Roman symbols was clearly expressed, then later the influence of the East intensified.
The tunic was considered the underwear of the ancient Romans. It was necessarily worn by both men and women under their main clothes. In case of cold weather, very often two or more tunics were worn one on top of the other. Women could wear strophies under their tunics, a prototype of bras. They were leather strips whose purpose was to support the breasts from below. Bathing suits were also known to the Romans. In those days, they were strips of fabric tied around the chest and hips.
Hats
Despite the fact that the Romans adopted a lot from the Greeks, the habit of covering their heads did not take root. Headdresses were considered a specific attribute of priests and judges. A hood or the upper part of a toga, which was thrown over the head, protected from bad weather. If headdresses were worn, they were hats similar to Greek ones. Peasants could wear hats made of straw or leather. Women covered their heads with bandages, nets or round hats. Representatives of the nobility could attach a veil to their headdress that fell over their shoulders. These headdresses are also taken from Greek culture.
Shoes
In everyday life, the Romans preferred light shoes - solea. These were sandals tied to the foot with special straps. Soleas were definitely not suitable for public appearances. Because of this, other footwear also became widespread: boots, shoes.
When going out into the world, the Roman wore ankle boots made of leather, which were called calceus. These shoes covered the owner's entire foot. The color of the shoes also mattered. The emperor could wear a calceus made of red leather, and the senator could wear black. The shoes were decorated with various plaques and brooches. The lower strata of the population were content with wooden shoes or shoes made of rough leather. Women's shoes were made from soft leather of various colors. Noble women wore light-colored shoes framed with pearls or stones.
The influence of Greek culture is very clearly visible in the clothing of the ancient Romans. Much was borrowed practically without changes, however, its own originality is present. The clothing of the ancient Romans was influenced by the strong military component of the life of this people. Not only the conquered territories, but also neighboring empires contributed to culture.
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Over the several centuries of its existence, ancient Roman society and its way of life changed significantly. At first, the cut and style of ancient Roman clothing was greatly influenced by the Greek tradition, however, over time, the clothing was transformed and acquired a completely different look. This was influenced by the militarized nature of the Roman Empire and contact with other peoples and their traditions. How did clothing change in Ancient Rome and what were its main elements?
Clothing in Ancient Rome It was made from sheep's wool, flax, and silk, which was brought from the East. These fabrics made it possible to create robes reminiscent of Greek tunics and togas, draped with numerous folds. In later times, denser fabrics became popular, changing the silhouette and cut of clothes, making them more case-like.
The colors of clothing become more complex over time. White, popular in the early period of Roman history, gradually became a solemn color; people wore it only on holidays, but in everyday life they preferred bright and rich shades. In later times, Roman clothing began to abound in embroidery with complex geometric patterns. However, only wealthy people could afford it.
Outerwear in ancient Rome
Outerwear could tell a lot about its owner, his social status and ethnicity. The everyday outerwear of the male population in Rome was sheep wool toga, but only citizens could wear it. A purple toga was an attribute of a winner, a gray or black robe was a sign of mourning. There were also special togas for minor boys, clergy and candidates for official positions.
The toga was a semicircular piece of material that was wrapped around the body over the left shoulder, forming many draperies. It was not entirely comfortable to wear such a robe every day, so very quickly it turned into a formal one and gradually fell out of use. In everyday life, the Romans began to use penula - warm raincoat made of thick fabric, which was worn over the head. Thus, the body was covered on all sides, the head could be protected by a hood. Roman soldiers also wore a similar cloak; it differed from the usual civilian cloak in its short length and the presence of a clasp on the right shoulder.
Women's outerwear there was a palla cloak that went down to the ankles. The palla could go down freely or be secured with a belt at the waist. This cloak was made from fine wool; there were several options for its cut, as well as color options.
Men's and women's clothing in Ancient Rome was at first quite heavy and bulky, slowing down movement, so over time the cut evolved into a simpler and more comfortable one. This was greatly facilitated by the contacts of the Romans with the barbarian states of Europe.
Men's clothing in Ancient Rome
Men's clothing in ancient Rome was presented tunics various cuts, some of which were very reminiscent of Greek attire. They were made from linen or wool, and their length reached the knees. As a rule, tunics were loose shirts and were belted at the waist. They dressed over the head, for which there was a slit on the chest.
The appearance of the tunic depended on the social status of its owner. Peasants and slaves wore simple, dark, mostly brown clothing. Aristocrats they preferred white and decorated their clothes with embroidery, inlaid stones and precious clasps. By the tunic one could distinguish a senator from a commander, and from an ordinary soldier or priest.
Men's tunics They were sewn without sleeves, since they were considered a sign of effeminacy, but young men from aristocratic families sometimes liked to shock society by appearing on the street in the female version of the tunic with sleeves and a veil on their heads.
A toga was worn over the tunic. Often men wore several tunics one on top of the other.
Trousers were not worn in ancient Rome, they were considered the clothing of barbarians, unworthy of citizens of a great empire. However, the soldiers who served on the northern borders still had to put on this unusual item of clothing to withstand the cold.
Women's clothing of Ancient Rome
At first, the daily clothing of Roman women was a longer type of tunic. As wealth grew, it was replaced by the table - a wide tunic with many folds and short sleeves. This robe reached to the feet, its bottom was decorated with ribbons or frills, and the waist was fastened with a belt. The basis of women's clothing Ancient Rome had graceful draperies that flowed downwards, and the table was no exception. This form of clothing was considered the privilege of free married women who have an impeccable reputation.
The color scheme of women's outfits was very diverse and distinguished by brightness and richness. For example, the bride's attire consisted of a long, bright red pala dress, which was worn over a tunic, and an orange veil was thrown over the girl's head. In everyday life they wore clothes in yellow, golden, blue, green and gray shades.
Instead of underwear Roman women used a lower tunic with a loincloth, over which was worn an upper tunic, and then a draping cloak, the palla or penula. Roman women used them or special veils to cover their heads from street dust. Headdresses of any kind were rarely used, in part because women of the Mediterranean Empire placed great importance on hair care and elaborate hairstyles.
The Romans wore sandals and shoes made of soft leather, which were decorated with embroidery and metal details. An important addition to clothing were numerous decorations made of precious metals and stones.
The clothing of Ancient Rome still attracts attention from designers and fashion fans because it allows you to create a beautiful silhouette. Thus, the aesthetic ideals of the Empire continue to exist, being further proof of the enormous contribution that ancient Roman culture made to the development of human civilization.
Shoes in ancient Rome
Types of Roman Shoes
A. Feather - shoes without a heel that covered the ankle were used throughout;
B. Calceus - shoes were worn with a dress and worn outside the home;
C. Calceus Patricius - closed shoes with transverse straps;
D. Caligae - used in the army, and was reinforced with iron or copper nails;
E. Soleae - shoes worn at home.
The militarized nature of the Roman slave state over the course of several centuries transformed the small city-state of Rome into a powerful world power, under whose authority was the territory of modern Europe, Asia Minor, and Egypt. Wars of conquest, sharp class differentiation, wealth and luxury at one pole, poverty and lawlessness at the other give Roman society an appearance in which the features of similarity with ancient Greece are lost.
Roman art is conventionally divided into the art of the period of the Republic (IV - I centuries BC) and the art of the period of the Empire (I - V centuries AD). During the period of the Republic, Rome conquered Greece (2nd century BC), and from that time on, the culture and art of the Romans were greatly influenced by the culture and art of Greece.
Aesthetic ideal of beauty
The ancient Romans appear to us as stern, physically strong, developed, hardy people. Not the Greek cult of a beautiful athletic body, harmony of proportions, but the severity and courage of a warrior, adaptability to any conditions, severity and simplicity - these are the main features of the ideal that was formed in the early stages of the Roman state. The appearance of Greek and Roman women is largely similar.
Roman matrons enjoyed greater rights and respect in society than women in Ancient Greece.
The ideal Roman woman embodied majesty, slowness and a certain static character. A figure with rounded shoulders, wide hips and a flat chest was considered beautiful. Light was considered the ideal color for the appearance of the Romans, especially after blond slaves, the Germans, appeared in Rome. Hair was dyed light golden tones or wigs of that color were worn.
Fabrics, color, ornament
Like all Roman art, Roman costume was influenced by Greek traditions. This affected the linear-rhythmic design of the costume, the manner of wearing two or three clothes at the same time, and the use of fabrics similar in fiber composition and color.
However, Roman clothing differed from Greek clothing in many ways, especially during the Imperial period. Fabrics, as in Greece, were made by hand, the material being sheep's wool and linen. During the Empire, expensive silk fabrics began to be imported from the East. A pound of such silk was worth a pound of gold. Along with thin and transparent silks, dense and heavy types of brocade were fashionable, which became increasingly popular. The use of dense and heavy fabrics leads to a gradual transition of the shape of clothing from draped to flat, sheath-like.
Rice. 1
The color scheme in Roman costume is bright, colorful, the main colors are purple, brown, yellow. During the Empire, the color scheme acquired a complex, refined character in shades and combinations of colors: light blue and green with white, light lilac with yellow, grayish blue, pinkish lilac.
Late Roman fabrics had geometric patterns - circles, squares, diamonds with rosettes, quatrefoils, stylized leaves of ivy, acanthus, oak, laurel, and garlands of flowers inscribed in them. The patterns were embroidered or woven in two or three colors, which, together with the gold decoration, gave the fabric a special splendor and luxury (Fig. 1).
Men's suit
In the early periods of the Republic, draped clothing prevailed, which emphasized the natural beauty of the human figure and partially exposed it.
Rice. 2
Tunic and toga- the basis of the ancient Roman men's suit, although they differed in their artistic and constructive design from the Greek chiton and himation, they nevertheless had many common features.
Tunics (Fig. 2) had several varieties, distinguished by the length and width of the product, and the length and width of the sleeves. The richer and more noble the owner of the tunic, the more skillfully it was decorated. Decorative decorations (stripes, embroidery, ornament) also had a class-official character. They were predominantly dark cherry, purple, and blue; the color had a certain symbolism. Thus, purple vertical stripes along the front of the tunic, varying in number and width, were worn by Roman senators and horsemen. The victorious commander's tunic was purple, embroidered with a pattern in the form of golden palm branches.
The Romans attached a deeply symbolic meaning to outer clothing - the toga. The Roman poet Virgil wrote in his “Aeneid”: “The rulers of the world are the people dressed in togas.” Foreigners and slaves were not allowed to wear a toga.
Rice. 3
A toga (Fig. 3) is a complex drapery of a rectangular, semicircular or ellipse-shaped piece of woolen fabric measuring 6x1.8 m. One of the most common ways of draping a toga was the following: from the back, a floor-length part of the toga is thrown from the back onto the left shoulder (the toga is first folded lengthwise so that the top is narrower than the bottom). This part covers the left shoulder and left side of the figure. The flowing fabric covers the back and passes under the right arm to the front. On the side under the arm, approximately at waist level, the fabric is twisted with the inside side up and the resulting tourniquet is attached to the belt of the tunic. Then the fabric is laid in semicircular folds, lowered to the level of the knees, and again thrown over the left shoulder onto the back. After this, the left end is pulled up, placing it on the chest in a semicircular fold. Unlike the Greek himation, which draped freely and naturally on the figure, following the plasticity of movements, emphasizing their beauty, the toga created a completely different artistic image. Large sizes, complex canonized drapery approved by law, snow-white expensive fabric, a purple stripe - a sign of class distinction - were primarily supposed to emphasize the special position of the Roman patrician, his nobility and superiority over other members of society. The drapery of the toga was fixed by impregnation with a special composition.
In later periods, heavy and bulky togas were replaced by a light cloak like the Greek chlamys, which was carefully matched in color to the tunic and worn with a fibula on the chest, covering both shoulders.
Rice. 4
In European clothing of the Middle Ages and even in modern capes, another type of Roman cloak has been revived - penula(Fig. 4) - the cut is a circle or semicircle with a hole for the head, to which the hood was sewn. Penula made from coarse wool was used in peasant clothes, and from expensive decorated fabrics - in the costume of rich dandies.
From the 3rd century. n. e. draping antique clothing is gradually being replaced by a blind overlay, which hides the natural shapes and proportions of the figure.
Changes in costume were due to the influence of East Asian forms and the spread of Christian ideology in Rome. Long narrow tunics and wide dalmatics appear, covering the figure from the neck to the feet; characterized by variegated ornamentation and a passion for decoration. An example of such clothing, far from ancient traditions, is dalmatic- long and wide overlay clothing with long one-piece sleeves (Fig. 5).
Rice. 5
The costume of a noble Roman is complemented by ankle boots or sandals with backs.
During the period of the Empire, jewelry was widely distributed in the costume of the nobility: rings, rings made of various metals, which were worn 5-6 pieces on each finger. Bracelets play the role of an award sign.
Straight short hair combed over the forehead and a shaved face or small curled beard complete the appearance of the Romans. The “head of Titus” hairstyle of short curls with sideburns, named after the Roman emperor Titus Vespasian, has gone down in history.
The clothing of the Roman poor and slaves was a tunic, penula made of coarse woolen or linen fabric; in bad weather they wore simple wooden shoes.
Woman suit
Rice. 6
Drapery formed the basis of Roman women's costume until the 3rd-4th centuries. n. e., until light and thin Greek and Assyrian silks replaced heavy oriental fabrics with large patterns.
The cut of the women's tunic was no different from the men's.
Over the tunic, noble Roman women wore table, wider and longer than the tunic (Fig. 6). The combination of a tunic and stola was decided by a combination of different textures and densities of fabrics, length of sleeves and decorative design of stola. The bottom of the table was trimmed with a pleated frill. The stola was girded with an overlap, which created certain proportions.
Rice. 7
The outer clothing for women was a draped cloak - palla. The head was covered with a veil or the edge of a palla (Fig. 7).
Women also wore penula as outerwear (Fig. 8).
Rice. 8
The color scheme of the women's costume was dominated by combinations of tones of brown with golden yellow, lilac with green, blue with gray. The main types of decoration and decoration were embroidery, fringe, jewelry made of gold, pearls, and precious stones.
In the III-IV centuries. The idea of the beauty of a woman’s figure is changing. Developed forms, emphasized proportions, revealed by draped clothing, are replaced by flat, static forms, which are created by closed clothing made of heavy, inelastic fabrics.
The simple, harmonious hairstyle of Roman women, which preserved Greek traditions, was replaced during the Empire by a high hairstyle with a fan-shaped frame and artificial hair extensions.
Roman women's shoes were soft shoes made of colored leather, trimmed with embroidery or metal plaques.
Based on materials: N.M. Kaminskaya. History of the costume
Clothing of Ancient Rome
If the history of Greek costume began with extraordinary Asian diversity, prim splendor and petty artificiality and ended with noble simplicity, picturesque breadth and a large pattern of folds, then the costume of the Romans changed in the opposite direction: from a simple, unpretentious form to pretentious excess and pomp.
In the early stages of the Roman state, the aesthetic ideal of the Romans was stern warriors and majestic women. The ancient Romans appear to us as physically strong, developed, hardy people. Not the Greek cult of a beautiful athletic body, harmony of proportions, but the severity and courage of a warrior, adaptability to any conditions, severity and simplicity - these are the main features of the ideal man of the early republican period.
The ideal Roman woman embodied majesty, slowness and a certain static character. A figure with rounded shoulders, wide hips and a flat chest was considered beautiful.
The poor agricultural population of Rome could hardly learn anything from the Etruscans, their closest neighbors in ancient times, who loved luxury and splendor; in any case, in the first centuries Roman costume developed independently. This is evidenced by the name “Roma togata” - “Rome wearing a toga” - which distinguished it from all neighboring tribes. Like Greece during the Persian Wars, the Romans developed their own type of national clothing, which by the 2nd century. BC. shaped like a majestic toga.
Men's and women's costumes began to separate already in the early period of the history of Ancient Rome, when Roman women wore ancient Greek clothing, and men continued to wear Roman togas and cloaks. This noticeable difference existed until the late empire, when almost the same type of closed attire was common among both sexes, and men's and women's costumes became similar.
The aristocratic nature of the republic, the privileged position of Roman citizens in relation to other residents of the vast territory of the Roman state, the developed bureaucratic apparatus headed by the emperor - all this created within the free population of Ancient Rome various social groups that tried to emphasize their isolation both in appearance and in clothing .
The white toga, for example, was the outerwear of only full-fledged Roman citizens. Slaves did not have the right to wear a toga at all; class differences were also observed in women's clothing. The class difference in costume in Ancient Rome was also manifested in the sharp difference in the quality and richness of the same type of clothing among representatives of the nobility of Roman society and among the entire other population.
The wretchedness of the clothes of the common people was in sharp contrast to the luxurious costumes of the nobility. According to contemporaries, the wife of Emperor Claudius (4І-54 AD) on one of her ceremonial appearances was decorated with jewelry worth an astronomical amount - 40 million sesterces.
And just as in Greece, the point was to protect national clothing from alien influence and from spreading luxury. An example is the law on clothing of the tribune Oppius (215 BC), directed against the luxury of Roman women’s outfits.
As a matter of fact, this danger was most threatened by Greece after it became dependent on Rome (146 BC) and the Romans had the opportunity to directly perceive a Greek culture higher than their own.
In addition, Greek clothing was more comfortable, lighter, and more elegant. At this time, the majestic, but uncomfortable, movement-restricting toga is preserved only as a civilian (ceremonial) costume, and clothing very close to Greek becomes everyday. Same role as in Greece chiton, in Rome begins to play tunic. It was most often worn as a house dress without any additions.
The difference between a tunic and a chiton was that the chiton consisted of one piece of fabric and was wound around the body, while the tunic (as a type of long blouse) was worn over the head. At first it was sleeveless, with slits for the arms (elbow-length sleeves appeared later), ending below the knees and belted at the hips. The tunic had a rectangular cut. There were purple stripes along the chest and back - one or two at a time (they could indicate, for example, the rank of senator). The main color was white, the material was wool.
Later, men began to wear a tunic that reached to their heels, and as material wealth increased, they even began to wear several tunics at once - one on top of the other.
Roman women wore the same clothes, but always wider and longer to the toes. At first, the tunic served them as a simple home dress, but with the growth of prosperity, it began to play a more modest role as a shirt (an undertunic made of thin linen), and its place was taken by another type of tunic - table(stola - lat. rich), with folds, a long train, with or without a belt, looking very impressive. It could be with sleeves (of greater or lesser length) or without them at all; the sleeves were open along their entire length and were fastened with fasteners (agrafs) in two or three places from the elbow to the shoulder. The edges of the table were almost always bordered with colored embroidery.
The Romans wore outerwear over the tunic: men - toga, women - pallu. The toga was at first a lighter form of cloak, but over time it became like a long and heavy himation. We do not know any images of its earlier, simpler form, but the later one, with a truly Roman arrangement of folds and an abundance of fabric, looks much more majestic than its prototype - the himation. It is a huge piece of fabric (about 3.5 m wide, over 5 m long), cut in the shape of an ellipse or half an ellipse, which is wrapped around the body in a much more complex way than a himation.
Oddly enough, there is still no complete clarity in ideas about the shape and cut of the toga. Only the following is known. Before wrapping the toga around the body, the two segments that made it up were folded in such a way as to obtain two unequal ovals (half-ovals), then a longitudinal fold was carefully formed and left overnight in wooden clamps. After this, one end, often with a lead tassel-weight, was lowered, rounded outward, over the left shoulder forward so that it dragged along the floor. The rest of the folded fabric was pulled over the back, covering the body from behind from shoulders to heels, the other end was passed forward under the right armpit, directed diagonally across the chest to the left shoulder and thrown over the shoulder and arm back; hands remained free.
The difference between a toga and a himation was that both parts of the toga, separated by a fold, were applied to the body at the same time; the large one covered the lower part of the body; the smaller upper one, going to the shoulder, formed a kind of overlay - umbo(letters, protrusion on the shield, later - fold of clothing, drapery). Above this overlay they made an overlap on the chest like a pocket - the so-called sinus(sinus - Latin arc, overlap, sinus), for this purpose, pulling up the front end of the toga, which was dragging along the floor, and opening the feet. Then the umbo was pulled over the right shoulder, covering it along with the arm.
It goes without saying that the toga, with its grandeur and extreme complexity of styling, could not serve as everyday clothing. Already in the 2nd century. BC. it was preserved only as festive and civil clothing: among noble Romans - from pure white wool, among young men - with one purple stripe along the edge (toga praetexta - bordered, framed), among emperors of a later time - entirely purple.
To replace it as an absolutely necessary outerwear, the Romans used penulu(paenula) - a warm cloak made of thick castor, closed on all sides, with a cutout for the head in the middle, covering the body from the shoulders, often with a hood. Later, this cloak began to be fastened on the right shoulder, like a Greek chlamys. Similar, but shorter cloak - sagum(sagum) worn by soldiers. In origin it was a Gallic riding cloak.
Just as men wore a toga outside the home, Roman women wore a pallu - a long cloak, sometimes reaching to the ankle and usually consisting of one piece of material larger than human height. During sacrifices, it was used to cover the head or wrap it around the body below the shoulders. The palla either went down freely or was pressed to the body with a belt. The palla was folded in half lengthwise. One half of it covered the chest, the other - the back; on the shoulders, by means of fasteners, both these halves were connected.
The palla was worn in different ways: it could cover both shoulders, like a himation, or be fastened with a clasp on one or both shoulders, or thrown over the head and enveloping the entire figure. The material was rather fine wool - purple in different shades, the color of heliotrope, mallow (pale lilac) or yellow.
Sometimes women wore an outer dress over their tunic - a table similar to a tunic, but longer and wider, with more folds. If the lower tunic had sleeves, then the table was sleeveless and was tied with a belt just under the chest, forming an overlap. The bottom of the table was necessarily trimmed with a pleated frill, sometimes representing something like a train. It was considered indecent to appear without a table or palla in a public place.
Bulky togas and pallas did not allow fast movement. In general, slowness in gait, impeccable drapery, and some theatricality in movements were considered the height of grace.
The main color of ancient Roman clothing in the early period was white, which showed the privilege of full Roman citizens. The white color partially retained its meaning later as the color of ceremonial clothing, especially when performing sacrifices and other religious ceremonies and rituals. Slaves and partial citizens did not have the right to wear white clothes. The colors of their outfit were dark: brown, yellow-brown and gray tones predominated. Starting from Art. II BC, along with white, clothes of other colors were widely worn. The colors of women's costumes were especially varied, while men's costumes had only red, purple and brown tones. Clothes dyed in the highest grades of purple, from the time of Domitien Flavius (81-96 AD) and especially Theodosius II, were strictly forbidden to be worn even by courtiers - purple became an exclusively imperial color.
During the period of the Republic and the early Roman Empire, clothing predominated from smooth, single-color fabrics without patterns, decorated only with border stripes of predominantly dark cherry, purple and blue. Later, multi-colored stripes and stripes of various shapes appeared in many details of the costumes (on the collar, sleeves, chest, on the shoulders, below the knees). The size of these patches is 15-20 cm. Patterned fabrics became widespread only in the costumes of the late Roman Empire, that is, starting from the 3rd century. AD Until then, they were used only on special occasions, namely for the clothing of triumphants and emperors. Late Roman patterned fabrics had a large continuous pattern of geometric shapes (circles, squares, diamonds) with plant motifs inscribed in them (rosettes, quatrefoils, ivy weaves), but very stylized, much more conventional than in the ancient Greek ornament. The patterns on the fabrics were woven or embroidered in two or three colors in such a way that they created the colorful multicoloredness of antique clothing, and at the same time they burdened the fabric and made it excessively lush. This splendor was further enhanced by the gold decoration.
Ornamental stripes on clothing with pattern motifs at first were not much different from the ancient Greek ones, but later they became more complex and more stylized. Lush leaves of acanite, oak and laurel, garlands of flowers, flowers and fruits, and complex plant curls appeared. Later, these still completely antique, realistic ornamental borders changed to stripes completely filled with geometric patterns.
The most common material from which clothing was made throughout the history of Ancient Rome was wool. The Romans have long been able to produce different types of woolen fabrics, in particular very thin and soft, and also dense, fleecy. Along with wool, linen fabrics were also used, mainly for underwear, which was worn directly on the body. Already in the 1st century AD. Silk was also known in Rome. The use of silk fabrics spread more and more, and already in the late period of the empire, silk clothing became quite common in the everyday life of the wealthy, especially in the east. At first it was light, thin silk and semi-silk fabrics, including translucent ones (for noble fashionistas), and then increasingly dense, heavy fabrics prevailed.
The Roman women also had a special thin veil, sometimes completely transparent. In addition to fine wool, transparent sea-green silk was used for clothing - Kos (named after the island of Kos in the Aegean Sea), which was delivered to Italy through Greece. Wall paintings at Pompeii show a wide variety of colors and patterns of Roman clothing.
The venerable matron gradually turned into an elegant, richly decorated lady. The rest of the toilet items were brought into line with this. Some intimate accessories of the women's toilet were of no small importance for the perception of body shapes and the corresponding stylization of clothing. For both Greek and Roman women, these included the mamillare, a soft leather bandage worn over the naked body and supporting the chest from below, and the strophium, a breast bandage worn over the lower tunic.
Roman men took little care of their hair, and they never had such luxuriously curled curls as the Greeks. In the early period they wore a full beard of moderate length; from the 3rd century BC. It became a custom to shave the beard in numerous Greek barbers. Only under Emperor Hadrian did short, thick beards appear again.
The hairstyle of Roman women was initially quite modest, but during the empire more and more magnificent and complex structures appeared, the creation of which required the help of several slaves.
Combs and brushes, hairpins, curling irons, all kinds of mirrors, cosmetics, hair dyes, etc. are widely used. During the wars with the Germans, golden hair like Germanic women was in fashion, and Roman women either wore wigs or dyed or bleached their own hair.
There were many varieties of Roman women's hairstyles - from a simple, so-called “Greek knot” with a straight parting to a tiara with hair raised high above the forehead. In addition, the hairstyle was richly decorated with hairpins (sometimes with figures), tiaras, pearls and stones. Earrings, necklaces, brooches, bracelets, rings, and belts were also used for decoration. The Romans significantly improved footwear compared to the Greek ones.
Pants were originally unknown to the Romans. But the legionnaires, who served in the “barbarian” lands in the north and west, brought from there, in addition to the above-mentioned Gallic cloak (sagum) with a hood (cucullus), also trousers (braccae), this “most un-Roman clothing”, which appeared in Europe in the ancient period of the existence of the Indo-Europeans, but only many centuries later was it able to step over the Alps.
Before this, the Romans wore windings. From the Germans they also borrowed wide trousers that reached the ankles. On monuments from the imperial era, Roman legionnaires are always depicted wearing stockings that reach to their calves; over them are worn shoes woven from straps, which cover the heel and sole (except for the toes) and end slightly above the ankle.
Rome. Warriors and gladiators of the imperial era
1. Heavily armed legionnaire from the VIII Legion of Augustus. Leather cuirass, leather trousers, a belt with metal overlays, a rectangular shield (scutum), a sword on a belt (balteus), a throwing spear (pilum) and a metal helmet (cassis) with a vertical decoration - a sultan (crista).
2. Legionnaire (similar to those depicted on Trajan's Column). Leather cuirass with an iron stripe (lorica segmentata).
3. Vexillary, or signifer, is a standard bearer with a bear or lion skin. Armor with rings, a leather vest, a sword, a dagger and a round shield (clipeus) made of leather with metal trim.
4. Aquilifer - standard bearer with the sign of the legion - an eagle (there were 4200 - 6000 warriors in the legion: 10 cohorts of three maniples each).
1. A signalman with a horn (sogpi) - a large curved metal horn, wearing a tunic with wide stripes in the middle.
2. Gladiator with a net (retiarius). He is protected only by a shell tied to his left arm, a belt with an apron and leggings with windings. 3. Mirmillo (mirmillo - gladiator in Gallic weapons). Helmet with visor, shield, belt, leggings and sword.
4. Thracian gladiator (thrax). The Thracian armament is the same as the myrmillon, and, in addition, there is another pair of greaves and a Thracian short curved saber (sica).
5. The chief of the gladiators (lanista) with a staff, in a wide tunic with two stripes, gesturing to stop the battle. Semi-open sandal boots.
1. Centurion (lat. centurio) - commander of a century. A scaly shell, on it are military insignia - silver phalerae (metal decorations). Decorated greaves, a double-folded cape, and a vine staff are the insignia of a centurion. Nearby is a helmet with a sultan, a sword in a sheath.
2. Senior officer. Cloak of fine purple wool. On the helmet there is a sultan in the form of a caterpillar. Round metal shield in early Greek style. Trajan's Column.
3. A horseman in a leather armor and trousers. Hexagonal shield made of leather skillfully trimmed with metal. Horseman's spear and long sword (spatha), which came into use from the end of the 1st century. AD
4. A soldier of the auxiliary army of the people allied to the Romans (Germans). An apron, a belt, a closed outer garment (paenula) with a hood, an oval shield, a sword, a dagger and two throwing spears. From a tombstone in Mainz.
Ancient Rome. Men's fashion
1. A toga laid in a simple manner over a tunic. The so-called statua togata (statue dressed in a toga), a portrait sculpture of an Etruscan in peacetime clothing.
2. Pontiff (pontifex) - a priest who performs a sacrifice. The toga also covers the head.
3. Provider of sacrificial animals or assistant to the priest during sacrifices - victimarius (victima - victim).
4. A resident of the city of Gabii in Latium, where the toga was worn in a special way: the end of the selected toga was thrown over the left shoulder and pulled up to the chest from under the right arm.
Left: coin with the head of Julius Caesar in a laurel wreath.
Right: coin from the reign of Emperor Aurelian (270 - 275 AD) with the imperial crown.
5. Julius Caesar addresses his soldiers. On top of the bronze-bound armor is a military cloak paludamentum, which was worn mainly by generals during war. It was longer than the usual military cloak sagum, and was fastened on the right shoulder with a clasp - an agraf.
6. Julius Caesar in a simple white men's toga (toga roga - pure toga, or toga virilis - toga of maturity), which the Romans had the right to wear from the age of 17.
7. An official in a speaker’s pose. The toga, bordered by one purple stripe (toga praetexta - bordered toga), was a distinctive sign of the Romans who held high positions.
8. The emperor wears a long cloak paludamentum, which was worn mainly by generals.
9. Lictor - a servant from the retinue accompanying the highest dignitaries, with a fascia (fastis - a bunch of rods, a sign of dignity).
10. The Emperor wears a long purple toga with a train, which was originally worn by censors - elected officials who monitored the receipt of taxes and the good behavior of the population. Permanent clothing of emperors, starting from the reign of Domitian (81 - 96 AD).
11. The Emperor wears a purple robe embroidered with gold over a belted toga.
12. The emperor performing a sacrifice, wearing a tunic and penule - a traveling cloak.
13. A young man in a pencil case.
14. Collar with hood (cucullus).
15. A pointed hat for protection from the sun, similar to the female hat of the Tanagra figurines.
Ancient Rome. Clothes of townspeople, women and priests
1. The charioteer (auriga) in the arena, wearing a colored tunic, with a palm branch - a sign of victory.
2. A man in a long, wide tunic (tunica talaris - tunic to the toes) without sleeves.
3. A villager wearing sheepskin clothing, high boots and a wide-brimmed hat.
4. A fisherman in a short shirt, leaving his chest exposed on the right.
5. Penula (cloak with a felt hood), rear view. The prototype of the North African burnous.
6. A slave in a highly belted tunic and sandals with windings.
7. Camillus - a young man of impeccable behavior from a respectable family who helps the priest during sacrifices. Belted tunic. Uncovered long hair, wreath.
8. A woman in a cloak and a short belted tunic, under which there is another tunic - an inner one, or subucula (shirt), longer, with tight-fitting sleeves.
9. A tunic made of a single piece of fabric (tunica recta - straight), reaching to the feet. A long veil under the tiara.
10. The wife of Drusus, a commander who successfully fought the Germans at the end of the 1st century. BC
11. A woman in a belted tunic (tunica mulierbis - female).
12. Vestals - priestesses of Vesta, goddess of the hearth and chastity. A cloak and coverlet over a long tunic.
13. Senior Vestal Virgin.
14. Empress Agrippina the Elder (wife of Germanicus and mother of Caligula, who died in 33 AD). A tunic in small folds, with semi-long sleeves, with a cloak thrown over it. Wig with braids on the sides.
Hairstyles in Ancient Rome
The hairstyles of Roman women under Emperor Augustus were striking in their diversity. Noble ladies kept several slaves just to style their hairstyles. Those who could not afford it or did not strive for luxury, of course, were content with more modest hairstyles and scarves. Simple hairstyles with a parting and a knot generally corresponded to the Greek ones. But noble and middle-aged women preferred elaborate hairstyles. 28 shows a knot (nodus) with a bow of hair parted and laid crosswise. In addition to ribbons, they wore nets, headbands, tiaras or simple forehead hoops. A wavy hairstyle similar to the Greek one is shown on 26. Braids, selected in various ways, are shown on 23, 25 (rear view), 27. A widespread hairstyle of noble Roman women were curls in the form of rings, tightly adjacent to each other and arranged in rows - 20, 22, 23 The hairstyle of Empress Messalina looks very skillful and majestic, almost like the jagged top of a fortress wall (21).
Materials used in the article
Sidorenko V.I. History of styles in art and costume
Lyudmila Kibalova, Olga Gerbenova, Milena Lamarova. "Illustrated encyclopedia of FASHION. Translation into Russian by I.M. Ilyinskaya and A.A. Loseva
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We are well aware of fashion in Ancient Rome from statues and written sources. All clothing was created from large pieces of fabric, which were wrapped around the body and secured with special pins or straps. Sewn items of clothing were crude and rarely used. Also, for the ancient Romans, clothing was a sign of social status (for example, only citizens of Rome could wear a snow-white toga).
Materials used by the ancient Romans
Basically, clothes were made from linen and woolen fabrics, because thin cotton fabrics imported from India and silk transported from China were worth their weight in gold; in the northern provinces, fur and felt were additionally used. All materials were of natural color, and only senators could wear togas with a purple border. Linear-rhythmic solutions for outfits were often used for decoration (for example, several elements of a costume, similar fabrics and color designs). Subsequently, with the development of fashion trends, brocade fabrics became popular, the use of which involved a deviation from the principles of drapery to case-like, overlaid clothing. Later, bright, monochromatic colorful colors from light blue to lilac-pinkish prevailed in Roman costume, and geometric patterns began to be used in coloring - circles, rhombuses, rosettes, squares, stylized leaves of gold.
Men's clothing in Ancient Rome
The men's suit was characterized by a strictly Roman style, which included a loincloth, rectangular multi-colored tunics with side and shoulder seams, and a belt. In the provinces, villagers also wore cloaks. A notable element of clothing of the ancient Romans was the toga, which was worn over a tunic and draped with a piece of woolen fabric of at least five and a half meters. Emperors forced their fellow citizens to wear the toga at all times as a symbol of their belonging to the privileged class of citizens of Rome.
Roman women's clothing
Roman women wore underwear (loincloths, corsets and tunics) made of undyed thin, simple woolen and linen fabric. Women's outerwear was called "stola" and was made of bright fabric, ankle-length. Very rich Roman women wore stola made of silk and cotton. At first, women also used a toga in their attire, which was later replaced by a palla made from a whole piece of fabric. It was draped in various ways and sometimes thrown over the head.
