Silk in Ancient Rome: Annotated Bibliography

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Table of Contents

Primary Sources
Secondary Sources
Work Cited

Thesis Statement: The clothing worn by Roman women throughout the Roman Empire was intended to convey their social status and financial affluence.

Primary Sources

Olson, Kelly. “Matrona and Whore: The Clothing of Women in Roman Antiquity.” Fashion Theory. 6:4, 387-420, 2002. Web.

Prostitutes and married women both wore the same clothing in ancient Rome, as discussed in this article. According to the text, people in antiquity defied prescribed attire by comparing literary materials to visual sources. Women in ancient Rome wore long garments known as tunics derived from the Greek chiton. A chiton was a loose piece of clothing attached at the shoulder and was worn by the Greeks as a casual garment. In addition to the tunica, ladies wore a loose piece of clothing known as a stola to cover the remainder of their bodies. These tunics might have long or short sleeves, depending on the individual’s taste for length. In ancient Greece, the stola was full-length clothing worn over a tunic and clasped at the shoulder from the waist. The book covers all of these women’s costumes in detail for each of the cultures covered in the book. Olson exhibits timelines and highly detailed artworks of all forms of costume design in their exhibition.

Olson presents several examples of how the fashion of ancient civilizations represented different classes in society. For instance, linen and silk from China were regarded as the most valuable fabrics for wealthy women. The Silk Road trade meant that only a few women could afford it. Plaiting one’s hair was a common practice among Roman ladies, in addition to attire. Curls and waves were frequently applied to women’s hairstyles to appear more polished. Throughout these periods, hairstyles ranged from basic pushbacks to elaborate plaited hair with several layers piled high over their heads. Women donned blond slave hair wigs and hair extensions. In addition to using hair dyes, they also experimented with different shades. The Greek-style heavily influenced fashion in Rome. Roman women’s costumes, which combined elements of Greek and Roman fashion, displayed their wearers’ social status and wealth.

Secondary Sources

Eliza, Burbano. Dress and Womanhood of Ancient Rome. 2016. Web.

This study explores how women in classical antiquity were viewed by other social groups based on their attire, and how this perspective differed from one group to the next. The author of this study contends that clothing in ancient Rome was more than just a way to show off one’s social class; it was a means of communicating societal injustices. To throw some light on how women perceived themselves, the book is interested in investigating the experiences that women have with the diverse perceptions of their clothes by other social groups.

To comprehend the historical significance of fashion, particularly during the Roman era, the book also makes it necessary to recognize that the study of fashion history has its roots in a European tradition that began after the Crusades, putting it in the fifteenth century or later. As Europe became more stable, the formal study of fashion began. There was more finished clothing in European marketplaces than in Roman markets. Products were sold in the market, referred to as the “loci.” European art and design and fashion markets were born out of capitalism. On the other hand, the Romans shaped their conception of femininity by imposing rigid roles on women for them even to be deemed human. Making clothes for one’s use, one’s husband’s use and the family’s use was expected of Roman women. While it wasn’t a skill that could be sold, this Roman moralism-inspired view of a woman’s worth increased her status.

Peacock, John. The Chronicles of Western Fashion, From Ancient Times to the Present Day. Harry N. Adams, 1991.

John Peacock’s Chronicles of Western Fashion features illustrations spanning periods as far back as antiquity and as far forward as the twentieth century. Fashion plates and descriptions of individual costumes and the people who wore them are a part of his collection. These educational plates represent people in modern civilization in various shapes, patterns, and creative expressions. Men, women, and children of all ages are depicted in his section on Egyptian fashion. Details abound as he creates these expressive portraits. Using this data, I will explain the same silhouettes and cuts they devised and the possible reasons behind their utilization.

Cleland, Liza, et al. The Clothed Body in the Ancient World. Oxbow Books, 2010

When Cleland, Harlow, and Jones wrote The Clothed Body in the Ancient World, they discussed the nature of dress and provided additional context for the costumes. Using data from these specialists, these three authors provide a fresh perspective on what these outfits represent concerning place, weather conditions, stage of life, grooming, and artwork. This collection will find information and interviews from textile conservators, costume designers and art historians. Many photographs of Egyptian wigs, jewelry, kalasaris, and make-up for both women and men are included in the publication. My goal is to demonstrate how men’s and women’s clothing differed and how their clothing was related to their environment in a broader context using the information I have gained.

Tortora, Phyllis G., and Sara B. Marcketti. Survey of Historic Costume. 6th ed., Fairchild Books, 2015.

The authors of this book guide the reader through many periods in costume design, beginning with the Ancient World and progressing to the 20th and 21st Centuries. In one of the chapters, they discuss Ancient clothes of different countries, including where they came from, the variations between women’s and men’s textiles, clothing, technologies, the eras, and accessories from the period in question. They cover all of these themes in detail for each of the cultures covered in the book. Tortora et al. exhibit pictures, timelines, and highly detailed artworks of all forms of costume design in their exhibition.

Tortora and Marcketti present several examples of how the fashion of ancient civilizations has inspired contemporary style and a thorough explanation of why the clothes of these civilizations were necessary. This book also recounts the significance of fashion during these specific periods and how it served as a forerunner for everything we have today, such as the wrap skirts they designed, which are still highly fashionable today. I intend to use this material to educate myself on the clothing of the historical period and learn how men’s costumes differed from women’s costumes.

FIT Student. “Fashion History Timeline.” About the Timeline | Fashion History Timeline, fashionhistory.fitnyc.edu, 2016. Web.

For those interested in fashion and dress history, the Timeline was created as an initial pilot project by FIT art history faculty and students in the Fall of 2015. For lovers of the history of fashion and clothing, this website provides comprehensive, easily understandable articles on a wide range of topics of fashion in ancient Rome. It is a living resource that will continue to grow and change to serve better the needs of both students and faculty (from the Renaissance scholar to the simply curious).

Work Cited

Wagner-Hasel, Beate. Women’s Work: The First 20.000 Years. Women, Cloth and Society in Early Times. 411-415, 1995. Web.

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Silk in Ancient Rome: Annotated Bibliography

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