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Read Ebook: Ancient Egyptian Assyrian and Persian costumes and decorations by Hornblower Florence S Houston Mary G Mary Galway
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Ebook has 176 lines and 15080 words, and 4 pages
COATS 86 AND 88
TROUSERS 88
LIST OF DATED GARMENTS
ILLUSTRATED
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN SECTION
PAGE
ANCIENT ASSYRIAN SECTION
PAGE
ANCIENT PERSIAN SECTION
EIGHTH CENTURY B.C. 84
DECORATION
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN DECORATION 13, 23 AND 29 ANCIENT ASSYRIAN DECORATION 61, 69 AND 73
WORKS OF REFERENCE 5 AND 47
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN COSTUME
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN COSTUME
CUTTING OUT
DECORATION AND COLOURING
Though we find Egyptian costume in many instances decorated all over with woven or printed patterns, decoration in the main was confined to accessories such as the head-dress, collar, and girdle, these being often painted, embroidered, beaded, or jewelled. See various examples given. The colouring which was usually, though not invariably, confined to the decorations consisted of simple schemes, variations of the hues of red, blue, green, yellow, and deep purple described on p. 66.
MATERIAL
The material used in the costumes was chiefly linen. In the most ancient types it was of a fairly thick, coarse weave; but in the later examples a fine thin linen, loosely woven so as to appear almost transparent, was used. The linen has often a stiffened appearance, and also gives the idea of having been goffered or pleated.
DATES
The earliest types of costume were the tunics; midway come the robes and skirts, and the draped or shawl type of costume appears the latest. However, the older types of costume did not disappear as the new ones were introduced, but all continued to be worn contemporaneously. The dates of most of the costumes in this volume are given with their description, and have been verified at the British Museum.
MEN AND WOMEN: THE DIFFERENCE IN THEIR DRESS
Prisse d'Avennes, "L'Art Egyptiens"; Leeman, "Aegyptiche Monumente"; Rossellini, "Monumenti Egitto"; Hottenroth, "Le Costume"; Racinet, "Le Costume Historique"; Sir J. G. Wilkinson, "Ancient Egyptians";
British Museum Handbooks and Reproductions.
These reproductions have lately been augmented and for those who cannot visit the Museum will be found most useful.
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN COSTUME
Figs. 2, 3, and 4, dating 1700, 1500, and 3700 B.C. respectively, are wearing dresses of the first great type of Egyptian costume--namely, the tunic type. They were made of fairly thick linen. Fig. 2 is put on by stepping into it and pulling it up. Figs. 3 and 4 are put on over the head; the measurements given will fit a slim figure without underclothing. The origin of Fig. 2 was most probably a piece of linen of the same length as this garment but wide enough to lap about half round the figure and have a piece tucked in at the top to keep it closed. This sort of tight drapery is quite commonly worn by negresses in Africa to-day. We also find it on some ancient Egyptian wooden statuettes, the drapery being of linen while the figure only is in wood.
This robe should be compared with that worn by Darius, King of Persia, later in this volume.
Musicians are often represented wearing this robe, sometimes rounded off at each side of the hem so that it does not trail as it does on Fig. 5.
This robe on women is also sometimes tied with a narrow girdle under the breast instead of the edges being knotted.
Three other geometrical borders and two all-over patterns are given; g shows an example of the well-known feather or scale pattern; h is a favourite geometric motif, and was often printed or painted on garments. A very charming effect also of this pattern was a tunic entirely composed of beads, or beads and reeds, and worn over the garment shown on Fig. 2, p. 11. Several beaded networks of this type may be seen on the mummies in the British Museum.
Fig. 12 shows another method of wearing a similarly cut but rather longer skirt; in this case there is no waist cord; two pieces of the upper edge about half a yard apart are taken in the hands and twisted, one is crossed over the other and tucked inside, the other is pulled up and
Fig. 13 is an Egyptian woman's costume dating 1450 B.C.; she is wearing two garments--namely, a skirt and cloak. This skirt, which is frequently worn alone without the cloak, as shown in Fig. 12, is cut to exactly the same width top and bottom. It is wide for the figure, and the superfluous fullness is caught up in each hand in the act of putting on. The upper edge of garment is drawn tightly round the figure just under the breasts; the portions held in each hand are then tied together in a knot. In Fig. 13 the cloak is knotted in with the skirt; this cloak is simply a rectangular piece of material. It will be noted that Figs. 13, 14, and 15 all show the popular Egyptian effect of drapery drawn tightly round the back of the limbs and falling full in front.
Fig. 14, which dates A.D. 200, shows a Roman adaptation of the same costume. The figure wears underneath a long tunic, and over this, tightening it in at the waist, an Egyptian skirt; a small Egyptian scarf is knotted to the skirt in similar fashion to the costume in Fig. 15. All the garments worn by Fig. 14 are rectangular pieces of material; the tunic is two straight pieces of stuff sewn up the sides; the top edge is divided into three parts by pinning; these openings form the neck and arm-holes.
Fig. 15 is a Greek costume of the fourth century B.C. in which the Egyptian influence is equally strongly marked; in this case, again, the garments are all rectangular pieces of material, the sleeves in one with the tunic. To knot the cloak to the over-skirt, as shown in this figure, the fullness of the over-skirt should be bunched up in one hand; the two corners of the cloak are taken in the other hand and twisted together round the skirt in a knot.
and over the right shoulder towards front, then throw the remaining portion of garment across the chest and backwards over the left shoulder; take corner a and bring it round under right arm-pit, release corner b which you first tucked in, and tie it to corner a. The corner c will hang down in a point at the back.
To drape the costume on Fig. 17, which dates 1300 B.C., take the corner a of Fig. 17A and hold it at right side of waist in front, pass round the back and round the left side to front again, tuck in some pleats in centre front, and pass on round the back to left side of waist under left arm towards the front; catch up the entire garment and throw over the right shoulder, pass the upper edge of the garment round the back of the neck and over the left shoulder and downwards across the breast to right, where the corner b should be tied to corner a. Corner d hangs down in a point at the back.
For Fig. 18, which dates 1600 B.C., take the corner a of Fig. 18A and hold it at right side of waist in front, pass the edge a-b round back of waist to the left side and across the front of waist, pass it round the right side again under the right arm towards the back and upwards over the left shoulder; tie the corner a to corner b in front.
For Fig. 19, which dates 550 B.C., tie a waist cord, hold corner a of Fig. 19A at left side of waist in front, and throw the whole garment upwards over the right shoulder to the back; take the corner c, bring it round under the right arm, and hold it along with the corner a; draw the edge a-b, which still hangs over the right shoulder, downwards across the back to left side of waist. Bring it round to front of waist and pin it to the corners a and c at the left side of waist in front, passing the garment on round the front; tuck in a few pleats in centre front into the waist cord, then pass it round right side of waist and upwards across the back over the left shoulder, downwards across the breast to right side of waist; here pass a loop of material over the left wrist as shown in diagram; now pass a girdle round the waist over the entire drapery, knot it at right side of waist, confining the drapery as illustrated in Fig. 19.
Here are three other varieties of Egyptian costume. Fig. 20, which dates sixth century B.C., is an arrangement of a cloak worn by a man . Fig. 21 shows an interesting cross-over garment sheathing the upper part of the body, worn by a Warrior King, 1200 B.C. It was probably made of leather or quilted linen . This figure is also wearing one of the characteristic belts with appendages . Fig. 22, which dates 1300 B.C., is wearing a robe, as previously described on Fig. 6, but in addition has a stiff corselet of leather or quilted linen which is fastened at the side; the date of this figure is 1300 B.C.
A COMPARISON
THE INDIAN "SARI"
The method of draping is as follows: Tie a waist cord; take the corner b and fix it to the right-hand side of waist, then pass the edge b-a across the front of waist, round the left side towards the back, and round the back of waist again to the right side; now take up some pleats in the drapery and push them inside the waist cord in centre front of waist, then pass on the drapery round the waist to back and round to the right side again. Now catch up all the remaining drapery and throw it upwards across the chest over the left shoulder. Let the corner c hang down the back, and bring the corner around towards the front of waist and tuck it in at the left side of waist, so that it will have the thrown-over portion to the right of it. This completes this draping of an Indian sari. The width of this sari will drape a figure of 5' 4", most of those worn by Indian women are narrower.
ANCIENT ASSYRIAN COSTUME
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
ANCIENT ASSYRIAN COSTUME
CUTTING OUT
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