Fashion of the Ancient Greeks

The Greeks did not make much of a fuss about the clothing. Their clothes had a very basic function, i.e. to cover and protect. It was all function based. Fabric was cut into a single piece and was styled or restyled according to the fashion of that time. The seams were easy and did not have a complicated style of clothing.

It was made out of the same piece of homespun fabric and was typically homemade. From all ancient Greek vase paintings and sculptures we can see that the fabrics were intensely coloured and were decorated with intricate designs. The clothing for both men and women consisted of two main garments which was a tunic which was either a Peplos or a Chiton. The other one was a cloak, called a Himation. The Peplos was a very large rectangular piece of fabric that was usually made of wool. It was folded over, along the upper edge, so that the over fold (Apoptygma) would reach around the waist line. It was wrapped around the body and had fastenings at the shoulders with a brooch or a pin. Armholes were present on each of the sides. The open side of the garment was either pinned, sewn for a seam or just left that way. 

 

There are some key elements in Greek clothing. First is the Doric Chiton which was a garment that was worn all the way to the sixth century. The Doric Chiton was wool dyed indigo, madder or even saffron. It was mostly patterned. To hang over the breast specifically, the upper edge was folded. Then the other fold was taken and was wound around the body, which was caught together on each of the shoulders by a pin or a brooch. This left the arms uncovered. Although it was open on the right side, it was  held in place by a girdle,on top of the waist. In Attica and Gorinth, the cities of that time, it was sewn together, with no open end on the right side. The garment grew wider and wider as time passed. The over fold was deepened so as to conceal the girdle by including it inside  the girdle or hung over it. 

 

If not girdled, the over fold could be worn over the head in the back as a shawl by raising it.

 The second element that can be noticed of Greek clothing is the Ionic Chiton. It was of Phoenician origin. It was seen as a garment for women but was worn by both the sexes.  The chiton was made out of thin woolens, crepe-like material. Linen , or a gauzy material was used as well. The fabric was cut with enough width from two pieces and then sewn together from the top of the extended arm. At times, it was pleated or just left to trail. Musicians and charioteers were frequently seen wearing this. The chiton was also worn with a chalmydon, which was a short wrap.

 

The third element or design was the Himation.  The Himation was a rectangular piece of cloth with weighed corners, which was slung over the left shoulder which left the right arm free or taken over the left side of the arm. The older men wore the Himation as the only garment and so did the Athenians. Funnily enough, the Himation also served as a blanketand also had woven patterns, selvages and embroidery. It was found in natural colours like white, browns, black crimson, or even purple. 

 

The fourth design is the Chlamys which is a smaller rectangular cloth made of wool. it was pinned at the right side of the shoulder or front, at times it was bordered, or just worn along with a short chiton. This was generally worn by men who were younger.  The fifth design was the Peplos which is a fabric folded over and hangs down, across the top of a Chiton. 

 

Overall, history tells us that the Greek clothing was primarily made of two types of materials. Firstly, they were made of wool. It was woven from very coarse to very soft types of wool. They also used linen in various qualities, from fine to very soft. The drapes in the Greek culture were not crisp and folded properly and the linen used was not as stiff as the ones used in Egypt.

The colours that were used during this period were bright hued like yellow, indigo, green, dark red, violet and earthy colors. The motifs had a vast range, from geometric patterns to arrangements of circles and squares to vegetable motifs like ivy, laurels and waterleaf.