A himation ( grc, ἱμάτιον ) was a type of clothing, a mantle or wrap worn by ancient Greek men and women from the Archaic through the Hellenistic periods (c. 750–30 BC). It was usually worn over a

chiton Chitons () are marine molluscs of varying size in the class Polyplacophora (), formerly known as Amphineura. About 940 extant and 430 fossil species are recognized. They are also sometimes known as gumboots or sea cradles or coat-of-mail s ...

and/or

peplos A peplos ( el, ὁ πέπλος) is a body-length garment established as typical attire for women in ancient Greece by circa 500 BC, during the late Archaic and Classical period. It was a long, rectangular cloth with the top edge folded down a ...

, but was made of heavier drape and played the role of a

cloak A cloak is a type of loose garment worn over clothing, mostly but not always as outerwear for outdoor wear, serving the same purpose as an overcoat, protecting the wearer from the weather. It may form part of a uniform. Cloaks have been and a ...

shawl A shawl (from fa, شال ''shāl'',) is a simple item of clothing from Kashmir, loosely worn over the shoulders, upper body and arms, and sometimes also over the head. It is usually a rectangular or square piece of cloth, which is often folded ...

. When the himation was used alone, without a chiton, and served both as a chiton and as a cloak, it was called an ''achiton''. The himation was markedly less voluminous than the Roman

toga The toga (, ), a distinctive garment of ancient Rome, was a roughly semicircular cloth, between in length, draped over the shoulders and around the body. It was usually woven from white wool, and was worn over a tunic. In Roman historical tra ...

. It was usually a large rectangular piece of woollen cloth. Many vase paintings depict women wearing a himation as a veil covering their faces. The himation continued into the

Byzantine era The Byzantine calendar, also called the Roman calendar, the Creation Era of Constantinople or the Era of the World ( grc, Ἔτη Γενέσεως Κόσμου κατὰ Ῥωμαίους, also or , abbreviated as ε.Κ.; literal translation of ...

as "iconographic dress" used in art and by the lower classes, worn by Christ, the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

, and biblical figures.

Wearing styles

Sitting_Achilles_wrapped_in_a_himation,_depicted_on_a_greek_kylix_from_ca_500_BC

Himation is not kept in place using pins, unlike other types of Ancient Greek overgarments. When worn by men, the himation is draped over the left shoulder and wrapped around the rest of their body, except for their right arms. For women, the himation allows for either the right or the left arm to be freed from the garment. Vases depicting life during the start of

Archaic Greece Archaic Greece was the period in Greek history lasting from circa 800 BC to the second Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC, following the Greek Dark Ages and succeeded by the Classical period. In the archaic period, Greeks settled across the ...

showed that men of all ages and social classes wore the himation over the

. But by the 6th century, only certain groups of men continued to wear both (e.g., priests, father of the bride, mythological figures); unmarried men and married men alike only wore the himation. Women also started wearing both the chiton and himation during the same period and continued the practice into the Hellenistic period. Older boys, who are above the age of

ephebos ''Ephebos'' (ἔφηβος) (often in the plural ''epheboi''), also anglicised as ''ephebe'' (plural: ''ephebes'') or archaically ''ephebus'' (plural: ''ephebi''), is a Greek term for a male adolescent, or for a social status reserved for that ...

, when not wearing the style followed by adult men, covered their entire body with the himation. Though there is no exact rule to follow in wearing himation – except during worship in Greek sanctuaries – the style which a person adopts can provide a different meaning and society judges a person's character from how they chose to wear their himation. Which body parts they chose to reveal also led others to perceive them differently.

Ancient Greek philosophers Ancient Greek philosophy arose in the 6th century BC, marking the end of the Greek Dark Ages. Greek philosophy continued throughout the Hellenistic period and the period in which Greece and most Greek-inhabited lands were part of the Roman Empire ...

at the time mention this perspective in their works. One of them,

Theophrastus Theophrastus (; grc-gre, Θεόφραστος ; c. 371c. 287 BC), a Greek philosopher and the successor to Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. He was a native of Eresos in Lesbos.Gavin Hardy and Laurence Totelin, ''Ancient Botany'', Routledge ...

, described Boorishness in his work

Characters Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

, as a person who sits while allowing his himation to be draped above his knees. For women, himation can also be worn as veils, as depicted in several vases from the Archaic era. Despite this, women rarely wore himation without a chiton, especially those of the elite class.

References

External links

* {{Historical clothing, state=expanded Byzantine clothing Greek clothing Robes and cloaks

Wearing styles

See also

References

External links