What kind of clothing, fashion &
adornments were there in ancient
Rome and how is one able to
determine the social class of a
person based upon this?
By Annie Lin
11ANC1
Clothing
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public display & recognition of status was an essential part of retaining one’s status
clothing was designed to reveal the social status of its wearer
According to Sebesta & Bonfante, ancient Roman clothing signified “rank, status,
office, or authority”.
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characteristics of clothing that distinguished one class of people from another
were the:
-design
-colour
-style
-fabric
-way it was worn
As the Romans were very competitive, sumptuary laws were passed to control the
amount of display that people of different social standings were allowed to exhibit.
We can thus deduce that ancient Romans were very fashion-conscious in regards to
how clothing was used as a social marker.
Men
Through the course of Roman history (753 B.C.E- 467 C.E.) there were two
garments that were essential to the male wardrobe:
Tunica
Toga
• the simplest of
garments & was a
type of shirt
• Always worn
under a toga or a
long coat
•an oval shaped cloth draped
around the body
•was worn to look smartsimilar to wearing a suit
today
(on normal occasions- simple
woolen cloak worn over
tunic)
•only men who were Roman
citizens could wear a toga
These two garments were capable of sending complex
messages about taste, social status, and power
Tunica
Though the tunica was worn by all men in ancient Rome, the colour and fabric of it marked
important social differences.
Lower Class
Citizens
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a simple tunica made of undyed, rough wool
might also wear a simple belt around it
some working men wore a tunica that fastened over only one shoulder (exomis)
belt used to adjust length of tunica by pulling fabric over
Middle &
Upper-class
Citizens
• tunicas made of softer wool, and later of linen and cotton
Upper-class citizens:
• paid a great deal of attention to how their tunicas were belted
• used either a narrow belt or a wider girdle, which might have pockets to hold personal
belongings
• in cooler seasons, wealthier men often wore two tunicas- a tunica interior & a tunica exterior
Source 2
Source 1
As can be seen in this mosaic of a man being attended by two slaves, on
either side of him, working men & slaves frequently hitched their tunics
higher over their belt for freer movement. (Source 2) They also sometimes
wore tunics that left one shoulder uncovered & this is depicted not only in
the mosaic but also in Source 1 on the left in the marble statue of a
wounded Amazon wearing a exomis, from The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Tunics weren’t usually cut in a T-shape & this left extra
material to drape under the arm. This can clearly be
seen in Source 3 which is a statue of a first- century CE
orator who is dressed in a tunic & toga.
Source 3
Tunica patterns & styles changed a great deal over time
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In early Rome, long sleeves were
considered to be effeminate & tunics were
cut above the knee. This can be seen in
Source 4 where a man is wearing a kneelength tunica under a coat.
Source 4
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By the later empire, long sleeves were common & tunicas extended almost to the feet
Later, tunicas were worn without a belt or girdle, so that the fabric billowed about the
body
During the empire, tunicas became more decorative:
- tunicas with clavi were worn by people of all classes, & the stripes became
more elaborate, with rich colors & patterns
-might also have striped bands on the sleeves & patterned panels
Clavi
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clavi- dyed coloured bands/stripes that ran vertically down the tunica from each
shoulder
the width & colour of clavi indicated a person’s status, office or rank
one of the primary forms of decorating a tunica & toga
Green- medical profession
Purples- generals & emperors
Blue- philosophy
For example:
oTunica angusti clavi: narrow purple stripes- worn by magistrates
otunica laticlavia: wide purple stripes- worn by senators
otunica palmate: made of purple silk, embroidered with gold thread
& worn with a special toga- worn by victorious generals and
emperors
Source 5
Most ancient statues do not
show clavi, however this wall
panting (Source 5) from a
lalarium in Pompeii depicts
both the tunica laticlavia and
the toga praetexta.
Rules governing the clavi (sumptuary laws):
•All freeborn could wear a 3/8 inch side clavi (but those with money often bribed
officials for a wider clavi)
•The latuc clavus was the widest & was a symbol for the highest rank
Toga
•was very large (6m) & was draped around the body in an intricate manner
•Was at first worn by both men & women but was discarded by women, except those of a
disreputable sort, at the beginning of the Imperial Rome
•In the Republic, all togas were white (to get the colour of pure whiteness it would have to
be bleached which signified status for men & women) but later on they became quite
colourful
•only worn by Roman men that were citizens & so was the earliest distinctive racial
garment- a badge of Roman citizenship
Like the tunic, the colour, style, fabric & way it was worn was important in
determining the status & age of the wearer.
For example:
oToga Praetexta: off=white toga with a broad purple border- worn by curule magistrates
oToga Virilis: plain toga of a typical citizen- worn by boys after age 15/ 16
oToga Picta: crimson embroidered with gold- worn by victorious generals in triumphal
processions & the emperors
oToga Candida: given a shiny, glossy look by rubbing it with chalk- worn by candidates running
for political office
oToga Pulla: natural black wool- worn during periods of mourning
Though the nature of the toga is known primarily
through literary references, a number of statues
still exist that provide us with information about
the toga & the manner in which it was worn by
the ancient Romans.
Firstly, we are able to identify common features of the toga.
As can be seen on the statue to the left, the toga was draped around
the body in a very complicated manner.
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First, the cloth was folded lengthwise- it was partly pleated at the fold.
It was then draped over the left shoulder of the body & then under the
right arm & then back over the left arm & shoulder.
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It was held in place partly by the weight of the material and partly by
keeping the left arm pressed against the body.
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The large over-fold in the front of the body was called a sinus, and part
of the material under this was pulled up and draped over the sinus to
form the umbo.
umbo
sinus
A Roman senator dressed in a toga.
Secondly, we are able to see changes to the toga over a period of time.
Like the tunica, toga styles evolved considerably over time.
Source 6
Source 7
By comparing the bronze statue on the left (Source 6), which is from the beginning of the
first century BCE, to the statue of a Roman senator on the right (Source 7), from the late
Republic or early centuries of the Empire, it is evident that the size & manner of draping the
toga became more elaborate over time.
The back of the toga was pulled over the
head during religious ceremonies, as can be
seen in the two marble statues of Augustus
as High Priest.
Source 8
Due to the complicated nature of togas, it
was only worn for formal occasions, such
as a wedding depicted in Source 8.
It was a difficult task to put the toga on
properly by oneself, and according to Heimbach
most wealthy Romans had a slave called a
vestiplicus who was skilled in the ‘art of draping
a toga’ and was specially trained to perform this
function.
Women
Roman women had three main fashion staples:
Tunica
(under-dress)
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Standard item not only in men’s
clothing but in women’s as well
women's tunics were fuller &
longer, usually extending to the
feet
color, weight, fabric, texture, fit,
sleeves and method of
construction varied according to
social class and the dictates of
fashion
Palla
(wrap/ shawl)
Stola
(overdress)
The Toga was at first worn by both
men & women but was discarded
at the beginning of the Imperial
Rome, by women, except those of
a disreputable sort such as
prostitutes and adulteresses.
Stola
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A sleeveless, V-necked, floor length tube-like dress, worn over a tunic, with institia across the shouldersshoulder straps that were made from cords or folded pieces of fabric to prevent the stola from falling & were
attached in such a manner as to produce a scooped neckline and to provide vertical folds down the front
was usually fastened with clasps and girdles were worn just below the bust and around the hips
The stola was often made out of linen with a coloured border around the neck, and sometimes the cloth was
embroidered with gold thread. It is probable though that the stola worn by lower-class women were typically
made of undyed wool
Was a symbol of marriage and was a way for a woman to publicly proclaim her respectability and adherence to
tradition as it was the ideal garment for married women
Statues such as the one of
the woman in Source 9
evidently displays the
institia of her stola.
Source 9
Palla
Source 10
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The palla was a large square of material that could be folded in half and draped in a variety of ways over the
shoulder. It could also be pulled atop the head for extra warmth, as shown in the depiction of a matron’s
elegantly draped & fringed palla, in Source?
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A palla was worn over a tunica and stola by respectable women when they went outside
Was usually made from linen or wool
Wealthy and high-status women in Ancient Roman society
had their clothing dyed rich colors and made of fine
materials such as silks and muslins
Children
Boys
Boys wore a knee-length tunica & a cloak over it in cold weather.
Once a boy became a man, at age 16 or 17, he had a ‘coming of age’ celebration,
where he would put aside his childish clothes, and wore an all-white tunic, which his
father adjusted.
Girls
Girls wore a simple tunic with a belt at the waist. When outdoors, they would wear a
second tunic that reached their feet & in cold weather would wear a cloak.
Interesting fact: children could wear the toga with the rank and
status of their parents, but when they turned of age they were
to discard it & put on the toga pura to gain their own status.
Footwear
Source 12
Women typically wore sandals similar to those of men, but they were of softer, finer leather
Various types of leather shoes and boots were worn, from heavy hobnailed varieties to light sandals & slippers:
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carlatina- sandal made from one piece of leather with a soft sole & openwork upper fastened by a lace
Soccus- a sole without hobnails and a separate leather upper, were like house slippers
calceus was a hobnailed shoe secured by laces
solea- a simple sandal with a thong between the toes and a hobnailed sole, worn inside by men & women
caliga- was a heavy sandal with a hobnailed sole and separate leather upper fastened by thongs worn by soldiers
Calcei- sandals with broad straps
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Winter shoes were often cork-soled
Sometimes the soles were thickened to provide the illusion of height, usually for women
Women did not wear stockings, but rather strips of woolen cloth wrapped around their legs if needed
Street shoes were made of leather and would offer better protection for the feet
Roman women’s shoes were usually brightly coloured & would sometimes be decorated with jewellery and pearls
Source 11
There were no dramatic gender differences in Roman footwear, though it was
possible to determine a person’s social status by their footwear. For example,
upper-class males such as a senator, wore distinctive shoes that marked their
status, such as the one in Source 11 & when comparing their footwear to that of
poorer person, such as the one in Source 12, the difference in quality is quite
evident.
Jewellery
The use of jewellery was widespread in Roman culture and became excessive.
Women
Women were passionately fond of jewellery and would wear items such as
rings, earrings, necklaces, pendants, cameos and bracelets- a
representative collection of such jewellery that would be worn by the
women can be seen in Source 13.
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Upper- class women wore considerable amounts of jewellery, made from gold
& silver set with precious gems, to show off their wealth
Poor women would wear jewellery made from cheaper materials such as
copper or bronze
Gold bracelets were often fashioned in the
form of snakes, as shown in Source 14
Source 14
Source 13
Gold coins were often made into jewellery, such as into a ring in
Source 15 or into a wristband in Source 16.
Source 15
Source 16
Men
Good manners dictated adult male citizens to
only wear one item of jewellery- a
personalized signet ring that was used to make
an impression in sealing wax in order to
authorize documents. These signet rings were
originally made of iron but later came to be
made of gold, such as in Source 17. However,
not all men followed this and some wore as
many as sixteen.
Source 18
Source 17
Source 19
Rings often had relief carvings, as can be seen in
Source 18, or intaglios, seen in Source 19.
Children
Children wore a special locket around their neck, given to them
at birth, called a bulla. It contained an amulet for
protection against evil and was worn on a chain, cord, or
strap.
Source 20
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Girls wore their bulla until the eve of their wedding day,
when their bulla was set aside with other childhood things
such as her toys & clothes.
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Boys wore their bulla until the day they became a citizen,
around the age of 15/ 16, & it was put aside and carefully
saved. If the owner of the bulla had won special honours,
he could wear it in ceremonial parades, to protect himself
from the jealousy of others.
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A bulla was made of differing substances depending upon
the wealth of the child’s family. For example, the bulla of an
upper class child would be made of gold, such as the one
that can be seen in Source 20 of a 2nd Century Roman
Bulla.
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A bulla cannot be worn by a slave & only by free citizens
Ancient Roman sewing needles were coarse and unwieldy by
modern standards and so sewing was kept to a minimum.
Hence, Roman clothing, both male & female, was frequently
pinned with fibula- fastenings such as broaches or clasps.
Such a clasp can be seen in Source 21. Many of these fibula
were made of gold, sometimes carved with beautiful designs,
and elaborately decorated with precious jewels. The Romans
were very fond of cameo, an engraving upon a stone such as
a gem, as can be seen in Source 22 & Source 23.
Source 21: The lacerna, a military
type cloak, was fastened on the right
shoulder with a gold or jewelled
clasp or brooch.
Source 22
Source 23
The design of the fibula was very similar to
today’s safety-pins, which can be evidently
seen in Source 24.
Source 24
Makeup
& Hair styles
Women
•Women relied mostly on elaborate hairstyles & jewellery rather than clothing to vary
their appearance as they would constantly change their hairstyle. For example, one year
ringlets would be fashionable and the next year hair piled high on the head would be, as
depicted in Source 25 of a bust of an elite Roman woman with a Flavian coiffure.
•Hairstyles for women were an important sign of status & so they varied according to a
women's social status. The wealthier women had more elaborate hairstyles as they
could afford wigs, hair dye & other ornaments for the hair.
The great variation in hair styles can be seen below
Source 25
•Rich women were very fashion conscious and had specially trained slaves,
ornatrices, to help arrange their elaborate hairstyles and apply their makeup.
•Women would wear elaborate wigs & wigs made from the hair of Germans
captured in battle were very popular due to their natural blondness
•Women would often dye their hair to blondes & reds. (Batavian foam was
used to produce blonde hair & fat & ashes were used to produce reds.) They
would also wear false hair pieces to make their hair appear thicker or longer.
In this painting, a ornatrice can be
seen styling the hair of another
woman.
•Body hair was regarded as undesirable & was removed with pumice stone.
Facial hair was also removed with resin & pitch.
•Pins , that were usually decorated or jewelled, were used to keep the hair in
place. An example of one can be seen in Source? of a pin made of bone.
Makeup
The first application of makeup was a layer of foundation, which was usually made
up of chalk & orris root & a mixture of fat, starch & tin oxide. The wealthy often
favoured a white lead paste which was extremely dangerous as it was poisonous.
Next, rouge, made of red ochre, was applied to stain the cheeks & lips. Special
attention was paid to women’s eye makeup as well as to the eyebrows. The makeup
Kohl was applied & was made from using a cosmetic grinder to produce a mixture of
soot & galena. The women also used eye shadow, made from such things as saffron
& malachite. All of these cosmetic items were kept in a container, such as the one in
Source 26.
Source 26
Men
In early times, Roman men wore their hair long & had full beards but after
about 300 BC, it became the practice to wear their hair short & be cleanshaven, such as what is illustrated in Source 27. However, if a man was in
mourning he was permitted to grow his hair & beard as a sign of sorrow.
During the 1st century CE, men began to style their hair & wear beards again.
Like women, men would occasionally dye their hair in a variety of dark &
light shades & the wearing of wigs also became fashionable over time. If a
man was experiencing hair loss, he would often wear a wig to cover it as it
was seen as a disorder.
Source 27
One could usually determine the social class of a person based on their hairstyle as the poor
often ignored fashion since they weren’t able to afford the expense of luxuries that wealthy men
could, for example seeing a daily barber.
Children
Girls: Young girls usually wore their hair knotted at the back of the neck or in a ponytail, but
others had curls or bangs which were worn either straight or curled.
Boys: Boys didn't shave until they reached maturity & could wear the toga as they were now
deemed as citizens. When they shaved for the first time, their remnants were often preserved
in a small box & offered as a sacrifice to a god.
Bibliography
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