Clothes in ancient Rome were often made of sturdier materials like linen, wool, and leather.The then produced clothes were colorful and attractive, and hence, are admired by fashion lovers even today. Those clothes were usually dyed with vegetable dyes like indigo, pomegranate, and woad.Roman fashion was heavily influenced by the Greeks and Egyptians. But their fashion was not only limited to appearance but was also used to indicate social status, class, age, gender, and, for some, even their occupation. The clothes worn by Roman children, Roman soldiers, married and unmarried girls, general Roman citizens, and Roman emperors were all different in adornments, style, and colors to depict their place in society. Today, many famous fashion designers study the clothing worn in the earlier eras of Rome. They intensively study what Roman men wore and what Roman women wore on normal days and even on formal occasions along with Roman culture to create designs and bring in the ancient Roman fashion influence that lure fashion lovers.If you like reading interesting facts about ancient Greeks and Romans, why don’t you take a look at ancient Roman food facts and ancient Rome architecture facts here at Kidadl.Ancient Roman Clothing History The clothing of the ancient Romans was rather interesting in the ancient Roman empire. Clothing was very similar to what you would see in today’s society, especially the Roman dress and Roman cloaks. Both adult female and adult male citizens mainly wore togas and tunics. Today’s fashion is very similar to the fashion of the ancient Romans. The style of the clothing that Romans wore was very simple, which is why it is still popular today.The history of clothes in ancient Rome started in the sixth century BC. Women wore a basic tunic, while men wore a toga. Togas were long pieces of cloth that were draped over the body. The length of the toga indicated the status of the wearer. They were more common in the centuries before the Christian era. It was effortless to make, so there are not many historical examples of ancient Roman clothing. The tunics were reasonably basic. They were worn over the shoulders and tied around the waist. Many people wore tunics because they were comfortable. They were easy to create and easier to make clothing. Togas were long, draped over the shoulders, and then wrapped around the waist. The togas were only worn by men. The tunics were worn by both men and women. The togas were very popular for formal occasions. They were worn by people who were rich and influential. The tunics were worn by the middle class and the lower class.Ancient Roman Clothing Of Females Clothing worn in ancient Rome was usually sewn into two pieces: the undergarment that was worn next to the skin and the outer garment that was worn over it. The undergarment was designed to be worn next to the skin, so the tunic was often the only article of clothing that would be visible. Most Romans had specially trained slaves to sew their clothes, especially rich women and rich Roman girls, as women’s clothing was much more intricate than men’s clothing back in the Roman Republic times.Ancient Roman clothing that Roman women or girls wore for women was very different than the clothing of today. For starters, women did not wear pants or jeans. If you saw a woman wearing pants today, you might think she is a modern fashionable woman. But if you saw a woman wearing ankle-length pants in ancient Rome, she was probably a slave. Women had several different clothing items that they wore for different occasions. The clothing that they wore in ancient Rome was not very different from the clothing worn by women today. Irrespective of their status, all women tried to look beautiful and decorate themselves with elaborate hairstyles and tunics of bright colors.Along with a simple tunic, women used to wear more than one tunic, like a stola and a toga pulla, depending upon the families they belonged to. Fastened by a girdle in the waist area, having a fabulous flounce in the knee-length tunic bottom and short sleeves, was a tunic called a stola, which wealthy Roman wealthy women thought was an actual or real dress and was given to a girl after she got married. Pulla was more like a shawl dyed with a purple border, mostly worn by women, over one shoulder, and had gold embroidery. Women belonging to the families of rich Romans would not leave their houses without a stola or pulla over their plain white toga or tunic.Ancient Roman Clothing Of MalesIt is tough to preserve ancient clothing, but there is an extremely well-preserved linen tunic in the Danish National Museum from the second to fourth century AD. It is Roman in style and was found worn on a mummy in Egypt from the same period.Ancient Roman clothing for men was simple and comfortable. It was also practical, with the hood sewn into the tunic worn in the summer and the heavier cloak (pallium) worn in the winter. Men wore a knee-length tunic (chiton), either sleeveless or short-sleeved. Warriors wore armor on top of their tunics, but the tunic itself was not armor. The tunic was made of wool, linen, or leather. A sleeveless tunic could be worn under the armor. A short-sleeved tunic could also be worn under armor. A long-sleeved tunic was called a chitonium. It was usually worn under the heavier cloak (pallium). Upper-class men and most Roman children wore togas made of soft leather or white wool. Rich boys wore or used to wear a toga, a purple toga, or used to wear togas with purple borders.What did the poor Romans wear?Both Roman men and women wore togas initially, but as the fashion faded, only men started wearing togas, and especially off-white toga became very popular among ancient Roman men. Washing clothes and doing laundry was a man’s job in the ancient Roman empire and was done in tubs or vats.There were a lot of poor people in ancient Rome. In fact, most people were poor. And the rich people usually had slaves. Poor people wore loose garments made out of animal skins, such as sheep and goats. They also wore clothes made out of plants, such as flax. And they wore clothes made out of wool, such as sheep. They also had no shoes. Most poor people were barefoot, and they walked on dirt and mud, sometimes on sharp rocks and broken glass. Soldiers wore military boot made of tough leather and a woolen belt.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for ancient Roman clothes facts, then why not take a look at ancient Roman government facts or ancient Roman religion facts.
Clothes in ancient Rome were often made of sturdier materials like linen, wool, and leather.
