Dressing Like a Roman

What follows was written by the late Clive Hewitt who went by the name of Sextilli amongst his friends in The Roman Military Research Society (THE RMRS). A long-standing re-enactor, Clive was passionate about accuracy in recreated fashions of the Roman period. In his original pre-amble he extorted readers to “please forget the ‘Roman epic’ idea of lots of folks scurrying around the Forum in brilliant white, long-sleeved nightshirts with bedsheets draped tastefully over their shoulders.” Accordingly, he set about producing an uncomplicated, quick guide for those wishing to create accurate Roman clothing, whether they be a re-enactor, interested third-party, or a movie costume designer. This is not, however, a fully referenced academic work. Rather Clive sought to collate as much information as possible from publicly available sources to improve the look and feel of Roman period impressions.

Civilian clothing in the northern part of the Western Empire

100 BC to AD 420.

Introduction

As stated in the sub-title to this work, the fashions or items described were worn from about 100 BC to about AD 420. Each item or group of items is not presented in a strictly century-by-century chronology. In certain circumstances this does occur, but as Clive noted this was “merely a happy accident”.

Much as we do today the Romans viewed clothing as a symbol of status where “power dressing” and conspicuous spending played a central role. What a Roman wore marked them out as either the ordinary man in the street or someone of power, prestige and responsibility. What was appropriate changed slowly over the centuries, although some older styles continued to be worn by certain people long after they had fallen out of general fashion. Similarly, there were dress styles prescribed for specific occasions, functions and functionaries, for example priests and augurs [1]. At various times there were sumptuary laws prescribing what was acceptable dress for those of differing social class. Most of these dictates were routinely and widely ignored except perhaps by those who lived and worked close to the Imperial family and the court for whom a fashion faux pas could have dire consequences.

The Romans also regarded the way a person dressed as reflective of their character. Suetonius, for example, in writing to one Lucilius drew attention to the author Maecenas [2] as an example of how one’s life and speech were intertwined:

“Doesn’t the looseness of his speech match his ungirt attire…his eloquence is that of a drunk - twisting, turning and unlimited in its slackness…Can you not imagine on reading through his words…that this was the man who paraded through the streets in a flowing tunic?..[and] when acting as a judge on the bench or making a speech, wore his cloak wrapped about his head…like [a] runaway slave in a farce.”

Particular forms of dress were adopted at specific times in a Roman’s life. The rite of passage from childhood to adulthood was one such. At about 12 or 13 years old boys put aside their bulla (an amulet worn about the neck to ward off evil, as shown right) and the child’s toga, with its dark red border, and assumed the plain white woollen toga of manhood. Girls, may be as late as 16, put aside their dolls, balls and other toys and prepared for marriage. As a bride she wore a saffron yellow veil (flammeum), a special dress, and had her hair dressed in the prescribed six or seven braids that had stylistic roots in far earlier times.

One of the most recognisable forms of dress was the Roman male citizen’s toga (pl. togae), but even this iconic garment changed over time. From its earliest form, the Etruscan tebenna, to the late imperial version, togae differed in size, cut, ornamentation and colour. For example, plebians wore a dark coloured toga, which was also adopted more generally by Romans in mourning, while purple was the exclusive preserve of the imperial family.

Although essentially having the same roots, women’s fashion evolved differently to that of men. There was much more variation in the cloth used, its colour and the degree, or not, of ornamentation. As always there are exceptions. Rome’s Vestal Virgins, priestesses who guarded the hearth and flame sacred to the goddess Vesta, only wore specific garments that echoed elements in common with high-status Roman bridal dress, and with the formal dress of high-status Roman matrons (married citizen-women). Vestals and matrons wore a long linen palla over a white woollen stola, a rectangular female citizen's wrap, equivalent to the male citizen's semi-circular toga. A Vestal's hair was bound into a white, priestly infula (head-covering or fillet) with red and white ribbons, usually tied together behind the head and hanging loosely over the shoulders. The red ribbons of the were said to represent Vesta's fire; and the white, virginity, or sexual purity.

That dress and jewellery were employed by Roman women as a display of status is evidenced by the speech reported by Livy [3] of tribune L. Valerius in 192 BC championing the right to display marks of honour:

“No offices, no priesthoods, no triumphs, no honorary insignia, no gifts or spoils of war can come to [them]; elegance and adornment and apparel - these are the insignia of women.”

The basis of all ancient Greek and Roman clothing (Latin: vestimentum) is a rectangular piece of cloth that is pinned, sewn, draped, cut or woven to the required size and shape. The Greeks named it a khiton, which for the Romans was their tunica. These simple garments were predominantly woven from sheep’s wool, but not always. Linen, silk and mixed fibres were known and recorded as used. Surviving examples of Roman cloth reveal a plain weave [4] was predominant but damask and twill was also produced.

Underwear

In this instance the term “underwear” includes all garments not readily visible to the observer of the fully dressed Roman. That said, the evidence for underwear is sparse. Formal representations in frescoes, mosaics and statuary rarely depict Roman men and women clad only in their underwear. There are exceptions. A mosaic in the Villa Romana del Casale Palestrite (Hall of Gymnasts) near Piazza Armerina in Sicily (pictured right) shows young women exercising wearing what are commonly described as “bikinis”. The parallels with the modern garment are obvious, but the tops appear to be linen breastbands (Latin: strophium or fascia [5) while the bottoms are reminiscent of a pair of 1st-century AD leather “bikini” briefs recovered in 1953 from a Roman-era well in Queen Street, London. This nearly 2,000 year old survivor (inset above) is made from a single, hourglass-shaped piece of leather, with adjustable side fastenings. Tied at the left hip, in a “granny” knot, they show clear stretch marks across the front panels suggesting they have been worn. A Roman statuette from Rennes of a topless female acrobat wearing similar briefs and protective kneepads offers speculative evidence that these items may have been worn by acrobats. How widely worn they were outside the Roman ‘entertainment’ industry is unknown.

The most common form of underwear was the loincloth (Greek: περίζωμα perizoma; Latin: subligaculum, subligar or subligaria), a shaped, diaper-like cloth tied about the waist and swaddling the groin (Sebesta & Bonfante, 2001, 233). It could be worn both by men and women. In particular, it was part of the dress of gladiators (right), athletes, and actors on the stage. Ina similar vein, Lewis and Short include an entry in their Latin dictionary for lumbare (pl. lumbaria), an apron for the loins.

There is reference in literature to feminalia and tibialia, coverings for the thighs and legs, mentioned by Suetonius as worn by Emperor Augustus in winter (Suetonius, “Augustus”, 82). Feminalia (derived from femur, “thigh”) were short, tight-fitting trousers covering the thighs to the knees worn in cold weather. On military monuments, auxiliary soldiers (auxilia) and cavalrymen are often depicted wearing feminalia. In the latter’s case the wearing of trousers makes sense to prevent the legs chaffing against leather saddles. Tibiale (tibia, “shinbone”) were puttee-like bandages or wrappings for the legs below the knees, again worn in cold weather.

Both men and women probably wore an under-tunic next to the skin beneath their other garments. The men’s version is known as subucula, while Women may have worn an indusium or camisia that may have somewhat like a slip or perhaps a sleeveless undershirt. The entry in Lewis and Short’s Latin dictionary for supparum defines it as a linen garment worn by women again possibly as an undergarment.

Common Clothing

Tunics The everyday garment of the Roman world was the tunica (pl: tunicae). It was worn by both men and women and is synonymous with the Greek khiton. Essentially the tunica is a rectangular piece of cloth folded laterally to form a tube sewn at the shoulders and from the underarm to the hem. Unlike the khiton, Roman men’s tunicae are more likely to have short sleeves extending from shoulder to roughly the elbow. The difference between the sexes was the overall length of the garment and where the hemline ends. For Roman women, dresses are typically shown full length with the hemline at least to the ankle. By contrast, Roman men tended to wear their tunicae with the hemline at or just below knee height, but there are examples of the wealthier elite wearing full length versions. By contrast, soldiers are almost always shown wearing tunicae with the hemline just above the knee (typically two to three finger widths above) allowing greater freedom of movement in exercise, manual labour and in warfare.

Tunicae were belted at the waist, with excess material pulled up and bloused over the belt to achieve the desired length. Unbelted the hem of a man’s tunica might reach mid-calf height or sometimes longer. Women’s dresses are often shown belted twice, once at the waist and again at the hips, giving a double-bloused effect. Similarly, dresses are also depicted belted high under the breasts, or cross-belted over the chest and tied at the waist.

Reference is also made by Roman authors to various other tunic forms:

Trousers Although decried by Roman authors as “barbaric”, long trousers (bracae) were known and worn by Roman men, especially soldiers in winter and the aforementioned cavalry in the form of ¾ length feminalia.

Sashes Also popularised by soldiers was the wearing of waist sashes commonly referred to as cummerbunds (fascia ventralis). Representational evidence from the tombstones of P. Flavoleus Cordus of Legio XIIII Gemina and Daverzus from Cohors IIII Delmatarum, for example, appear to indicate that a waist sash was worn beneath the military belt (Sumner, 2009,166-167). This may have been to protect the tunic from any sharp edges on the back of the belt, or possibly to support the lumber region of the back when wearing armour. Pliny the Elder records waist sashes (ventralia) were made of rough wool (Historia Naturalis, VIII, lxxiii, 193).

Belts The evidence for belts of various sorts is relatively sparse. While military belts are often depicted on sculptural reliefs and grave stelae, the same cannot be said for civilians. The archaeological recovery of decorative belt plates, buckles and other fittings reveal that soldiers spent their money and took pride in wearing eye-catching belts. It would be fair to say that soldiers wore their military belts when off-duty to distinguish themselves from ordinary citizens. Surviving belt fittings provide good evidence for belt widths and how they were assembled.

Scarves Roman soldiers, both legionary and auxiliary, are shown wearing focalia (“scarves”, sing. focale) about their necks on the Trajan’s Column reliefs. In the example shown right, the legionary soldiers seem to be wearing scarves tucked into their banded armour, while the auxiliaries are shown with theirs clearly visible. In the absence of any definitively identifiable, surviving examples, we can only speculate that scarves were of either wool or linen. Moreover, as their portrayal on sculptural reliefs like Trajan’s Column in Rome (see below) and the Adamklissi Metopes in Romania are almost invariably depicted beneath armour, what shape scarves took is equally unknown. Some re-enactors favour a triangular shape to better fit under armour, but this is probably incorrect; a more traditional long strip of cloth will work instead. Despite some arguments to the contrary, Nic Field posits that scarves were worn by soldiers to protect the neck from chafing by the armour (Fields, 2009, 25; cf. Sumner, 2002, 37). From personal experience a focali does indeed perform this function perfectly, but they also act as sweat cloth (Lat. sudarium), an item of clothing that modern soldiers value today.

Socks Despite their apparent rarity in the sculptural record, we know that udones (“socks”) were common. They are in fact mentioned in Vindolanda tablet 346 and are probably shown on the Cancalleria reliefs in Rome. Civilian socks may have been brightly coloured to emphasize the intricate openwork on pierced leather shoes. Soldier’s socks were probably more practical.

Socks could be made one of three ways: a “quasi triangular” piece of cloth sewn up either side, a weaving method somewhat similar to crochet known as “sprang”, an ancient method of constructing fabric that preserves its natural elasticity, or as a foot wrap. Examples of the first two styles have survived, with the cloth type surviving not only from Vindolanda but also from a series of waterlogged graves in Gaul. Likewise, the sprang type is known from examples recovered from Oxyrhynchus in Egypt dated to the 2nd-century AD (pictured above). The Egyptian examples were brightly striped and incorporated a separate toe to accommodate thong type sandals.

The socks shown on the Cancalleria reliefs, if indeed that is what they are, appear to be a tube of material or possibly sprang work, presumably woollen, covering the foot while leaving the toes and ankle exposed. The distinctive cut-out at the heel works to stop the sock ruckling uncomfortably beneath the sole or at the ankle.

Leg wraps and bindings Hosea, a general term for any form of leg covering, are known to have been worn by Romans in the absence of trousers. One form, leg wraps, are rectangular pieces of cloth which, as their name suggests, are wrapped around the lower leg. They can be tied in place using warp threads (from the weaving process) that have been deliberately left long and then plaited to form an integral tie rather than one sewn on. While the technique copies that used by ancient weavers for decorative purposes, weft threads extending through the selvedge, or heading band, to make a fastening will inevitably part company with the main body of the cloth. Using a separate binding strip is one solution for longer term (yearly) use. Leg wraps probably had a Germanic origin but would almost certainly have been used by Roman soldiers in Britain, particularly by those men serving in legions previously stationed in Germany.

In contrast, bandage-like leg bindings worn by Romans resemble the puttees worn by late 19th- and early 20th-century soldiers. Such bindings seem to be native to the Italians and are commonly seen in contemporary depictions. They are not only a good way of keeping the lower extremities warm, but also offer protection from rough undergrowth and provide support to the muscles of the leg. Indeed, the latter may have been the primary reason for their use, but it would also make sense to use leg bindings as cold weather clothing.

Both of these items, leg wraps and leg bindings, were probably known as fascia (Latin for “a band, bandage, swathe”) and when combined with socks provide excellent cold-weather protection. Fascia and udones (socks) may have been standard army issue as one papyrus recovered from Masada lists these items, with other clothing, among the deductions from a soldier’s pay.

The following is a list of the clothing typically worn by Roman men of particular social standing, with accompanying explanations:

The following is a list of garments typically worn by Roman women, with accompanying explanations:

Outerwear

When venturing outdoors Roman men and women adopted a variety of outer garments to keep warm and dry. To most people the toga is the quintessentially Roman outer garment, but in fact it was derived from a robe worn by the native Etruscans, a people who had lived in Italy since ca. 1,200 BC. The tebenna, as it was known, was merely an oblong of cloth worn as both a tunic and a blanket. Etruscan farmers would wear the tebenna when working in their fields, or as their “battle dress” when drafted into the army. It was only much later that this garment metamorphosed into the Roman toga, a formal dress item that, oddly, seemed to have been much despised and never a popular thing to wear. A more in-depth exploration of the toga can be read here: “The Roman Toga”.

Whether patrician or plebian, all were entitled to wear the toga, but the garment was an expensive commodity and probably beyond the means of the majority of the Empire’s male citizens. To protect themselves from the worst of the weather the Romans had a number of alternatives:

Literary references reveal there were also under-cloaks (subpaenulae), and at least one of the Rhineland stelae seems to show something which looks like shoulder doubling on the inside of the cloak. For soldiers, cloaks were not practical to wear all the time, so they represent only one type of cold weather protection.

Belts

The evidence for civilians wearing belts is relatively sparse. There is, however, a wealth of sculptural evidence for soldiers wearing belts. The archaeological recovery of metal belt plates, buckles and other fittings have provided good evidence for how military belts were made, their different regional styles and their dimensions.

Footwear

From observation of the extensive collection of recovered and preserved Roman period shoes housed in the Vindolanda Museum collection, Roman footwear ranged from wooden “clogs” to beautifully decorated and pierced leather shoes. Unsurprisingly there is also a large variety of footwear depicted in ancient Roman art and sculpture ranging in styles from soleae, sandals held in place by a leather thong or tongue between the toes, to calcea that enclosed more of the foot. Ankle and calf-height boots are also shown, as are caligae famously worn by soldiers. The subject of footwear probably deserves a separate article but the following lists the most common styles in the Roman period:

Headwear

Just as for footwear, the Romans wore several different styles of hats or head coverings. What follows is a list of types of headwear commonly encountered in sculptural reliefs, grave stelae and contemporary literature:

Ceremonial Clothing

What follows is a guide to recreating the garb of Romans performing ceremonial functions, most specifically priests, priestesses, and their acolytes.

Civic and military occasions The Toga Picta, unlike all other types of this iconic garment, was decorated with a gold embroidered red stripe. During the Roman Republic, it was worn by generals in their triumphs, and by the Praetor Urbanus, the magistrate in charge of the city, when he rode in the chariot of the gods into the circus at the Ludi Apollinares (the games dedicated to the god Apollo). During the Empire, the Toga Picta was worn by those magistrates sponsoring public gladiatorial games, by the consuls on their appointment to office, as well as by the Emperor on special occasions, for example ovations, when the cloth was dyed purple.

The priestesses of Vesta Popularly known as the Vestal Virgins, they guarded the hearth and flame sacred to the goddess Vesta in Rome. They wore specific garments echoing elements in common with high-status Roman bridal dress, and with the formal dress of high-status Roman matrons (married citizen-women). Vestals and matrons wore a long linen palla over a white woollen stola, a rectangular female citizen's wrap (see above). A Vestal's hair was bound into a white, priestly infula (head-covering or fillet) with red and white ribbons, usually tied together behind the head and hanging loosely over the shoulders. The red ribbons of the were said to represent Vesta's fire; and the white, virginity, or sexual purity. Over this Vestals wore a suffibulum, the short white veil with a purple border.

The last two items, the infula and suffibulum, were also worn by other priestesses not connected to the Vestals. To symbolise their official status, these priestesses are shown wearing garments with a purple striped border.

Flamen The chief priests of the Palatine Trinity and others of the Imperial cult formed a priestly college. Known as Flamen, all had to be married men; divorce was forbidden to them. While most posts were held by plebians, the senior flamen were drawn exclusively from the Senatorial class and included:

Flamen Dialis - the chief priest of the god Jupiter and thus the most senior man.

Flamen Quirinalis - the chief priest of the deified founding father, Romulus.

Flamen Martialis - the chief priest of the god of war, Mars.

They and their wives, known as Flamenica who had their own sacred duties, all had to obey certain restrictions on the clothing they were permitted to don. Each priest wore a galerius, a distinctive form of headdress tied under the chin that closely fitted the skull and sported either a spike or ball on top depending on the priest’s rank. The spike, reserved for the chief priests, may have been wooden, possibly of olive wood. Flamen would be distinguishable by their tunica recta (see above), laena (cloak), soft felt shoes without ties, and the particular staff of office they carried bearing the attributes of the god or goddess they served.

The Flamenica Diala, wife of the Flamen Dialis, wore the bride’s yellow veil, or flammeum, albeit with a purple border known as a limbus which may have been sewn on separately. A tunica recta may also have been a part of her official dress.

Augurs Those who took the auspices would have worn the clothing befitting their social status. This would include the straight tunica recta or the long-sleeved tunica mantica over which was worn a trabea, a toga of purple or ornamented with purple horizontal stripes, together with shoes appropriate to their rank. Around their head might be vittae, the woollen bands more usually associated with women. Augurs carried as their staff of office the lituus.

Camillus or Camilla A young assistant to a priest was known as a camillus if male or camilla if female. As described above, they wore a tunica recta (the “straight tunic”) over which a girl might wear a palla and a boy, a paludamentum (see above).

Sacrificator Many Roman religious rituals involved the blood sacrifice of an animal, usually carried out by a sacrificator. Given the nature of the task, these men were stripped to the waist while wearing a pleated “kilt” with a cloth belt (cingulum) and shoes, and carrying an axe (dolabrum) or triangular bladed sacrificial knife (secespita). These knives were also used by flamens and their wives, the flaminicae, vestal virgins, and the pontiffs for sacrifices.

Common fabrics

Until the introduction of the “Spinning Jenny” [9] in the 18th-century and subsequent advances in loom technology, one of the main activities for many women was the spinning of threads and weaving enough cloth to clothe their family or group. This was as true in the Roman period as any other in antiquity. Indeed, one of the epithets encountered on many a Roman matron’s grave stelae was the inscription “LF” which stands for lanem fecit and was understood to mean “she made good wool”. Naturally, high-status Roman matrons probably had slaves to perform the manual labour.

The most common material was sheep’s wool, but cloth of goat hair/wool, linen, hemp, cotton, silk and mixed fibres are also recorded. The majority of Roman cloth was probably of a plain weave although there is evidence for damask being woven in the period. It seems logical that twill and other figured weaves were similarly available.

Sheep’s wool Asked to describe sheep’s wool today, most people would probably say “fluffy and white” yet this is unlikely to be the case in the nature. Sheep are herbivores and in the wild subject to predation. While the flock offers some protection, and sheep can run fast for a short duration to escape a predator, a better defence is camouflage. In temperate regions, a white fleece will stand out and attract attention, so ancient breeds of sheep such as the Jacob or Manx Loaghtan have dark-coloured fleeces. The former are typically piebald (black or brownish grey with patches of white) while the latter have a dark brown wool. Wild sheep do not produce a “pure” fleece. Rather the useable wool is one part with other parts being unsuitable for good cloth making or are short, brittle fibres. It will come as no surprise that when humans started to farm sheep for their wool, milk and meat they also began the process of selectively breeding away from brown, black and grey fleeces to the more familiar white or off-white. The darker colours would be perfectly adequate for everyday clothes, but Italo-Roman farmers went to great lengths to breed for lighter hues suitable for bleaching (cf. toga pura) or dying.

Goat’s hair/wool Goat hair, or in some cases wool, makes for a very warm, hardwearing cloth. The hair is usually plucked rather than sheared and of whatever natural hue when taken from the animal.

Linen The raw material for producing linen comes from the flax plant (Linum usitatissimum). Also known as common flax or linseed, it is a flowering plant cultivated both as a food and fibre crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. The refined yet sturdy textiles made from flax are known in English as linen and are traditionally used for bed sheets, underclothes, and table linen. Its oil is known as linseed oil. Flax was cultivated extensively in ancient Egypt. Temple wall-paintings show flowering flax plants, Egyptian priests wore only linen garments as flax was considered a symbol of purity, and the final stage of the embalming process involved wrapping mummies in layers of linen bandages before the body was coated with a bitumen-like wax to preserve it for eternity. Surviving fragments of cloth dating to about 5000 BC indicate the Egyptians were processing flax from the Neolithic period onward. Strong, quick to dry and cool to the skin, linen remained the central fibre in Egyptian life long after wool had become widely used by other cultures of the Mediterranean and Near East around 2000 BC. In fact, Egyptian linen was thought to be of the finest quality and imported into as a luxury item, undoubtedly being taxed as such.

Cloth production was a labour-intensive process, however. Ancient farmers manually pulled the plant from the earth with its roots uncut to increase fibre length. After this, the flax is allowed to dry, threshed to remove the seeds, and then retted, a process of rotting away the inner stalk leaving the outer parts intact. There are several methods for retting flax. If field retting is used, the flax is laid out in a large field, and dew is allowed to collect on it. Depending on the climatic conditions, the flax remains on the ground between two weeks and two months for retting, with farmers regularly turning the straw to ensure an even retting. As a result of alternating moisture and the sun, an enzymatic action degrades the pectin that binds fibres to the straw. The process is generally considered to provide the highest quality flax fibres. Alternatively, retting can be achieved by submerging flax bundles in a pond, stream, river or water tank. When the retting is complete, the bundles of flax feel soft and slimy, and some fibres will be standing out from the stalks. When wrapped around a finger, however, the inner woody part springs away from the fibres. The straw, or coarse outer stem (cortex and epidermis), still has to be removed. It is “broken” into small, short lengths while leaving the actual fibre unharmed and then the process of “scutching” scrapes the outer straw from the fibre. The stems are then pulled through comb-like “hackles” that remove the straw and some shorter fibres out of the long fibre. The resulting bundles of soft, lustrous and flexible fibres have the appearance of blonde hair, hence the description “flaxen” hair. These loose fibres, which are stronger than cotton but less elastic, are twisted together and spun into thread before weaving those threads into cloth. The best grades of flax are still used for fabrics such as damasks, lace, and sheeting. Coarser grades are used for the manufacturing of twine and rope, and historically, for canvas and webbing equipment.

Hemp Although mainly used for making baskets, mats and rope, hemp can be spun and woven into cloth using processes similar to that of flax. Hemp produces hard-wearing material but its coarser texture and roughness made it less popular for clothing.

Silk A series of interlinked Eurasian trade routes that formed the “Silk Road” had been in use from the 2nd-century BC and would continue to be used until the mid-15th-century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometres (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the East and West. Beginning in the 1st-century BC with Virgil [10], Horace [11], and Strabo [12], Roman historians provide only vague accounts of China and the silk-producing “Seres” people of the Far East. The latter may have been the ancient Chinese, but Roman authors generally seem to have been confused about where the “Seres” inhabited, in either Central Asia or East Asia. Despite a persistent myth that Roman soldiers found their way to “Liqian” [13] in north-western China possibly in 36 BC, several alleged Roman emissaries were recorded by ancient Chinese historians; the first reputed contact between the two Empires being a visit by Roman diplomats in AD 166. That said, the notion of Roman merchants routinely travelling back and forth along the Silk Road between China and the Europe is fanciful at best. It is far more likely that Sino-Roman relations were limited primarily to the indirect exchange of trade goods, information, and occasionally travellers. Regardless, by the early 1st century AD, Chinese silk was widely sought-after in Rome, Egypt, and Greece. Indeed the Greek word “Holosericus”, meaning “pure silk”, implies that silk was far from unknown across a good part of the Empire. Although it remained a very expensive thread, it was available to Roman spinners and weavers either in the form of the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm (Bombyx mori), the raw fibre unwound from said cocoon (as was the Chinese practice), as a spun yarn, or as woven cloth. Silk cloth or garments, therefore, would have remained the preserve of the wealthiest Roman citizens.

Metallic yarn Yarns wrapped in precious metal (“lamé”) to produce “cloth of gold” or “cloth of silver” were available but at an exorbitant cost. Without modern rolling mills, manufacturing would be time consuming as the gold or silver foil would have to be beaten out by hand and then meticulously wrapped around the thread. Even so, lamé was known in the late regal period where king Tarquinius Priscus was said to have celebrated his triumph wearing a gold tunic. A graffito in Pompeii on the wall of the premises of a felt-maker named M. Vecilius Verecundus also mentions a tunica lintea aureus (“a tunic of golden linen”). Agrippina (the Younger), fourth wife of Emperor Claudius, notably wore a military-style cloak made of gold to watch a mock naval battle (naumachia) while Herod Agrippa, the last Jewish king of Judea, owned a slightly less ostentatious cloth of silver mantle. Later the emperor Hadrian was given a gift of a gold embroidered chlamys, a rectangular cloak of Greek origin, while those with the means might wear garments woven from gold and other threads with jewellery attached to them.

The Roman colour palette was smaller than that available to the modern dyer, yet it was still substantial and with over-dyeing the range of hues could be increased further. Today industrial dyes produce uniform, bright colours but we should avoid the perception that ancient dyers only produced rather flat, plain colours. The evidence suggests that ancient dyers were able to produce equally bright colours, especially when a garment was new, and used batik and wax-resist dyeing techniques for similar effect. Weavers could add to the colourful nature of clothing by producing check, or tartan, figured and striped cloth. So, brilliant colours would not be out of place or exceptional, but they might be thought of as vulgar or tasteless.

Dyes were not “fast” in the modern sense; they would wash out with repeated washing or fade over time in sunlight. Nor were dyes uniform from one piece of cloth to the next. A favoured way of dyeing was to dye the fleece before the wool was spun into thread, but this meant the hue often varied across an individual length of fabric. Cloth that was “piece dyed” - dyed after it has been woven - might exhibit colour variation owing to differences in the preparation and cleanliness of the fibres.

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References:

Bishop, M.C. & Coulston, J.C.N., (2006), “Roman Military Equipment from the Punic Wars to the Fall of Rome”,Oxford: Oxbow Books.

Lewis, C.T. & Short, C., (1879), “A Latin Dictionary”, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Sebesta, J.L. & Bonfante, L. (eds), (2001), “The World of Roman Costume”, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press.

Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus, (2007), De Vita Caesarum (‘The Life of the Caesars’), ‘Divine Augustus’, 82, London: Penguin Books, p. 89.

Endnotes:

1. An augur was a priest whose main role was the interpretation of the will of the gods by studying events he observed within a predetermined sacred space (templum) corresponding to the heavenly space above. The augur's decisions were based on what he personally saw or heard from within the templum; the practice being known as ‘taking the auspices’. The auspices included thunder, lightning and any accidental signs such as falling objects, but in particular, bird signs. Whether the birds flew in groups or alone, what noises they made as they flew, the direction of flight, what kind of birds they were, how many there were, or how they fed could all be indications of the gods’ will. As circumstance did not always favour the convenient appearance of wild birds or weather phenomena, domesticated chickens kept for the purpose were sometimes released into the templum, where their behaviour, particularly how they fed, could be studied by the augur. ▲

2. Gaius Cilnius Maecenas (ca.  70 – 8 BC) was a friend and political advisor to Octavian (who later reigned as emperor Augustus). He was also an important patron for the new generation of Augustan poets, including both Horace and Virgil. During the reign of Augustus, Maecenas served as a quasi-culture minister to the Roman emperor but in spite of his wealth and power he chose not to enter the Senate, remaining of equestrian rank. Maecenas’ prose works on various subjects (Prometheus, dialogues like Symposium (a banquet at which Virgil, Horace, and Messalla were present), De cultu suo (on his manner of life), and a poem In Octaviam (“Against Octavia”, the content of which is unclear)) were ridiculed by Augustus, Seneca, and Quintilian for their strange style, the use of rare words and awkward transpositions. ▲

3. Titus Livius (59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled Ab Urbe Condita (“From the Founding of the City”). It covered the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in 753 BC through the reign of Augustus in Livy's own lifetime. ▲

4. Plain weave (also called tabby weave, linen weave or taffeta weave) is the most basic of three fundamental types of textile weaves (along with satin weave and twill). It is strong and hard-wearing. In plain weave cloth, the warp and weft threads cross at right angles, aligned so they form a simple criss-cross pattern. Each weft thread crosses the warp threads by going over one, then under the next, and so on. The next weft thread goes under the warp threads that its neighbour went over, and vice versa.  ▲

5. The term fascia is used for a cloth binding for the legs. It can also be applied to the waist sashes or cummerbunds (fascia ventralis) seemingly worn by many soldiers. It is most likely, therefore, that the breastband worn by Roman women as an early form of bra were called strophium (pl, strophiums). ▲

6. Marcus Tullius Cicero was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, writer and Academic sceptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the establishment of the Roman Empire. His extensive writings include treatises on rhetoric, philosophy and politics. ▲

7. Isidore of Seville (Latin: Isidorus Hispalensis; c.  AD 560 to April 4th, AD 636) was a Hispano-Roman scholar, theologian, and archbishop of Seville. Isidore was the first Christian writer to try to compile a summation of universal knowledge in his most important work, the Etymologiae. This first Christian encyclopaedia comprised a huge compilation of 448 chapters in 20 volumes. ▲

8. The Edict of Diocletian, also known as the Edict on Maximum Prices, was an imperial decree promulgated in AD 301 that set the maximum prices for provisions and other articles of commerce, and a maximum rate of wages. ▲

9. Invented in 1764 or 1765 by James Hargreaves in Stan hill, Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, the spinning jenny is a multi-spindle spinning frame that reduced the amount of work needed to produce cloth. It was one of the key developments in the industrialisation of textile manufacturing during the early Industrial Revolution. The device enabled a weaver to work eight or more spools at once; this grew to 120 as technology improved. ▲

10. Publius Vergilius Maro (October 15th, 70 BC to September 21st, 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: the Eclogues (or Bucolics), the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid. ▲

11. Quintus Horatius Flaccus (December 8th, 65 BC to November 27th, 8 BC), commonly known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). Horace crafted elegant hexameter verses (Satires and Epistles) and caustic iambic poetry (Epodes). His career coincided with Rome's momentous change from a republic to an empire. ▲

12. Strabo (64 or 63 BC to ca. AD 24) was a Greek geographer, philosopher, and historian who lived in Asia Minor during the transitional period of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire. ▲

13. “Liqian” is a short form of “Alexandria” used by the Chinese to denote Rome. In the late 20th-century the town was identified as Lou Zhuangzi, an isolated settlement in north-western China on the fringes of the Gobi desert, more than 200 miles from the nearest city. ▲