Ancient Egyptian, Assyrian, And Persian Costumes And Decorations

ANCIENT EGYPTIAN ASSYRIAN AND PERSIAN COSTUMES AND DECORATIONS

BY MARY G. HOUSTON AND FLORENCE S. HORNBLOWER CONTAINING TWENTY-FIVE FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS, SIXTEEN OF THEM IN COLOUR, AND SIXTY LINE DIAGRAMS IN THE TEXT A. &amp; C. BLACK, LIMITED 4, 5 &amp; 6 SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W. 1. 1920 ...

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INTRODUCTION

If this work is to be kept within its limitations, it is naturally impossible to give a complete survey of all the varieties of the various styles. To get this knowledge it will be necessary to consult the works of reference, of which lists are given in each section. On the other hand, the special aspect of the work is more fully treated than in any other accessible book upon the subject. Every illustration of costume given has been actually cut out and made up before being sketched, except in a

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CUTTING OUT

As far as the cutting out of ancient Egyptian costume is concerned, we may divide it broadly into four types—namely: (1) The type of the tunic . (2) The type of the robe . (3) The type of the skirt , with or without cape. (4) The type of the shawl or drapery . The one or two varieties which occur in addition to these may be found in military dress and adaptations from the costumes of other countries. All the varieties above referred to are described in detail in this volume....

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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 ....

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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....

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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....

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MEN AND WOMEN: THE DIFFERENCE IN THEIR DRESS

It can easily be gathered from the illustrations that the types of costume worn by both sexes were very similar. The high waist-line prevails in feminine dress, while the male costume, if girded, was generally confined about the hips. British Museum Handbooks and Reproductions. These reproductions have lately been augmented and for those who cannot visit the Museum will be found most useful. Plate I. Plate I. , which dates 700 B.C. , is an exact copy of an Egyptian drawing. It will be noticed th

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Plate II.

Plate II. , which dates 1700 B.C. also first century B.C. , is an exact copy of an Egyptian drawing of a woman wearing a species of tunic with braces (plan, Fig. 1 ). The striped decoration upon this tunic is suggested by the lines of another type of Egyptian dress—namely, the drawn-up skirt. The origin of the decoration can be easily understood by a reference to the drapery on Plate IX. In the original of this drawing the figure is represented with a lofty head-dress in addition to the fillet o

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Plate III.

It will be noticed that the Egyptian dress decoration is chiefly confined to the collar, which will be seen in wear on Plates V ., VI ., VIII ., and X . The patterns were either embroidered, painted, beaded, or jewelled; the favourite lotus flower is almost always in evidence in the designs (see a, b, c, and d on Plate III. ). On this plate also will be seen several other characteristic borders (f, g, h, i), and two all-over patterns (k, e), which were probably either stamped or tapestry-woven o

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Plate IV.

Plate IV. belongs to the next great division of Egyptian costume, which may be called the “Type of the Robe.” This illustration shows it in its simplest form—namely, ungirded. To understand the quaint Egyptian drawing of Plate IV. a reference to Fig. 5 is necessary, which is a modern drawing of the same costume. As will be seen from the plan, Fig. 5 A , this garment consists of a piece of material twice the height of the figure and folded over in the middle; a hole is here cut for the neck and,

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Plate V.

Plate V. , dating 1450 B.C. , shows the same robe as Plate IV. worn in a different manner. In this case the garment is left open down the sides, the front half is taken and pinned at the back of the waist, and the back half is drawn towards the front and girded with a wide sash measuring 32” × 120”, as shown in Plate V. and Figs. 6 , 7 , 8 , and 9 . It should be noted that Fig. 6 is a modern drawing of Plate V. ; also the costume upon p. 19 , which dates 2500 B.C. , gives three different views o

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Plate VII.

The decoration on this plate shows the detail of the characteristic Egyptian winged globe (a), hawk (b), and beetle (scarabæus) (c). Plates I . and VIII . are examples of the application of winged decoration upon Egyptian costume. Three other geometrical borders (d, e, and f) and two all-over patterns (g and h) are given; g shows an example of the well-known feather or scale pattern; h (which is similar to e, Plate III. ) is a favourite geometric motif, and was often printed or painted on garmen

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Plate VIII.

The third outstanding type of Egyptian costume may be described as the “Type of the Petticoat and Cape” (the petticoat was sometimes worn without the cape). Now this petticoat or skirt, as shown in Plate VIII. and Fig. 11 , consists of a straight cut piece of material threaded through at the waist with a narrow strip which is knotted round the figure to keep the garment in position; the cape-like shoulder drapery is an oblong piece of stuff, to drape which take the corners d and e of Fig. 11 A i

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Plate IX.

The noteworthy details of the decorations on this plate are those illustrated at a and b. These are appendages from girdles such as worn by male figures; an example is Fig. 21 . The material of this appendage may be possibly of painted leather, wool embroidered linen, or linen with metal mounts. Many beautiful painted illustrations of this girdle appendage are to be found in the British Museum; e is from a feather fan. Fig. 13 is an Egyptian woman’s costume dating 1450 B.C. ; she is wearing two

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Plate X.

Plate X. shows the fourth division of Egyptian costume—namely, the “Type of the Shawl or Drapery.” Several varieties of this type are illustrated and described on pp. 33 , 34 , and 35 . The fourth division of Egyptian costume is shown in the examples on Plate X. and pp. 33 , 34 , and 35 . These are the draped or shawl type of costume. They have many resemblances to the draping of the well-known Indian sari of modern times. Compare these with illustration of sari ( p. 39 ). The ingenuity displaye

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CUTTING OUT

There are practically only two types of garment generally found in the representations of ancient Assyrian costume: (1) the shawl , and (2) the tunic . These vary in size and proportion, and are worn either alone, but more generally in combination....

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DECORATION

Except in the earliest examples, decoration is lavish in Assyrian costume; in fact, the costume of a King when at its richest may be said to be absolutely covered with ornament. Jewellery, woven and embroidered patterns, and fringes are used in the utmost profusion. See the illustrations of the most characteristic ornamental details of this style....

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MATERIAL

The materials used seem to have been of linen and wool. The skins and furs of animals and metal were also in use, but chiefly for military and hunting costume....

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DATES

The earliest type of costume here shown is a rather elaborate shawl drapery worn without any tunic underneath. Later comes the tunic with various fringed shawl draperies worn in addition, and some of the latest types have the tunic worn alone without the shawl draperies. The dates given for the costumes illustrated in this style have been verified at the British Museum. It should be remembered, as in the case of ancient Egyptian costume, that the dresses changed very slowly indeed, and most styl

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MEN AND WOMEN: THE DIFFERENCE IN THEIR DRESS

The representations of costume which Assyrian art has left us are almost entirely those of men’s dress. Two examples of women’s dresses are shown in this volume. The first wears a plain ungirded tunic and a simply draped shawl covering the figure partially. The second is the dress of a Queen, and has the tunic almost entirely covered with a voluminous shawl. The wide belt with narrow belt over it seems to be confined to the men’s costume, as also the tighter and scantier shawl draperies which ex

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Plate XII.

Plate XII. shows a number of characteristic Assyrian ornaments. a, The sacred tree. b, c, d, e, f, Repeating patterns on costumes. g, h, i, j, k, l, Borders on costumes. m, One of the many rosettes much used in Assyrian decorations. These should be compared with the decorated costumes shown in the plates; they would be either woven or embroidered. Plate XIII. —A facsimile drawing, from an enamel tile, is one of the many representations of the King Assur-nasir-pal, ninth century B.C. The descript

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Plate XIV.

Plate XIV. is the Queen of Assur-bani-pal, seventh century B.C. She wears a similar tunic to the King, but the sleeves reach half-way down the lower arm; her shawl, which is fringed all round, would measure 50” × 130”. It is wrapped once round the lower limbs, and so covers the bottom of her tunic; it is then wound round the upper part of her body in similar fashion to that of the woman on p. 59 , save that it goes in the opposite direction....

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Plate XV.

Plate XV. shows further details of Assyrian decoration; attention may be particularly drawn to the varied forms of the tassels. a, b, c, Bracelets. d, e, f, Ear-rings. g, h, i, j, Tassels from costumes and harness on horses. k, Winged globe. l, Palm tree. m, Lappet of a King’s tiara. n, Bronze vessel. o, Sword handle. GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF ANCIENT PERSIAN COSTUME ALSO INCLUDING TWO EXAMPLES FROM CAPTIVE NATIONS...

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CUTTING OUT

The garments illustrated in this style are of four types; of these, three have already appeared in the two previous styles—namely, the type of the tunic , the type of the robe , and the type of the shawl or drapery. In ancient Persian costume we come for the first time to type five: the coat . We may refer here also for the first time to the wearing of trousers, for these are usually shown worn with the coats in ancient Persian costume, and a diagram is given on p. 86 showing one of the earliest

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DECORATION

Ancient Persian decoration was so exceedingly similar to ancient Assyrian that it does not seem necessary to illustrate it. We do not find, however, that ancient Persian garments were ornamented to anything like the same extent as ancient Assyrian; the frequent fringes of the ancient Assyrian costumes were not nearly so lavishly employed in the ancient Persian style....

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MATERIAL

Linen and wool were most probably the chief materials used in ancient Persian costume, but there are indications that leather may have been rather extensively employed in the more tight-fitting garments. It must not be taken that either in Assyrian or ancient Persian dress the garments fitted as smoothly and tightly as might be imagined from the sculptured and painted representations; it is true folds are sometimes indicated, but the chief concern of the artists of both styles was to show the hu

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DATES

The illustrations here given of ancient Persian costumes date about the sixth and fifth centuries B.C. with two of neighbouring nations dating eighth century B.C. and sixth and fifth centuries B.C. respectively....

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MEN AND WOMEN: THE DIFFERENCE IN THEIR DRESS

There is not sufficient information to form a definite picture of the women’s dress of this period and style; most probably it was a simple tunic and shawl like that worn in Assyria, but an interesting fact is that we have a representation of the Queen of a Persian King who reigned in the fifth century A.D. who is wearing trousers, which, it will be remembered, are worn by Persian women of the present day. In this connection it may be noted that the history of costume, as developed through the u

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