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Whilst seemingly simple garments such as the tunic remained staples of the classical wardrobe, sources from the period reveal a rich variety of changing styles and attitudes to clothing across the ancient world. Covering the period 500 BCE to 800 CE and drawing on sources ranging from extant garments and architectural iconography to official edicts and literature, this volume reveals Antiquity's preoccupation with dress, which was matched by an appreciation of the processes of production rarely seen in later periods.
From a courtesan's sheer faux-silk garb to the sumptuous purple dyes of an emperor's finery, clothing was as much a marker of status and personal expression as it was a site of social control and anxiety. Contemporary commentators expressed alarm in equal measure at the over-dressed, the excessively ascetic or at 'barbarian' silhouettes.
Richly illustrated with 100 images,
A Cultural History of Dress and Fashion in Antiquity presents an overview of the period with essays on textiles, production and distribution, the body, belief, gender and sexuality, status, ethnicity, visual representations, and literary representations.
List of contents
List of Illustrations
Introduction
Mary Harlow (University of Leicester, UK)
Chapter 1 – Textiles
Eva Andersson Strand (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) and Ulla Mannering (National Museum of Denmark)
Chapter 2 – Production and Distribution
Kerstin Droß-Krüpe (University of Kassel, Germany)
Chapter 3 – The Body
Glenys Davies (University of Edinburgh, UK) and Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones (Cardiff University, UK)
Chapter 4 – Belief
Carly Daniel Hughes (Concordia University, Canada)
Chapter 5 – Gender and Sexuality
Glenys Davies (University of Edinburgh, UK) and Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones (Cardiff University, UK)
Chapter 6 – Status
Kelly Olson (Western University, Canada)
Chapter 7 – Ethnicity
Ursula Rothe (Open University, UK)
Chapter 8 – Visual Representations
Lena Larsson Lovén (University of Gothenburg, Sweden)
Chapter 9 – Literary Representations
Mary Harlow (University of Leicester, UK)
Notes
Bibliography
Notes on Contributors
Index
About the author
Mary Harlow is Honorary Associate Professor of Ancient History, University of Leicester, UK.
Summary
Whilst seemingly simple garments such as the tunic remained staples of the classical wardrobe, sources from the period reveal a rich variety of changing styles and attitudes to clothing across the ancient world. Covering the period 500 BCE to 800 CE and drawing on sources ranging from extant garments and architectural iconography to official edicts and literature, this volume reveals Antiquity’s preoccupation with dress, which was matched by an appreciation of the processes of production rarely seen in later periods.
From a courtesan’s sheer faux-silk garb to the sumptuous purple dyes of an emperor’s finery, clothing was as much a marker of status and personal expression as it was a site of social control and anxiety. Contemporary commentators expressed alarm in equal measure at the over-dressed, the excessively ascetic or at ‘barbarian’ silhouettes.
Richly illustrated with 100 images, A Cultural History of Dress and Fashion in Antiquity presents an overview of the period with essays on textiles, production and distribution, the body, belief, gender and sexuality, status, ethnicity, visual representations, and literary representations.
