Clothing And Costumes In Ancient Egypt
Egyptians placed a huge value on appearing beautiful and young. This was not only a result of their various secret makeup formulae but also due to the classy and stylish designs which they wore on their clothing and jewelry. Egyptians loved to wear jewels and the Royals used jewels for adorning their hair. Clothing was also very different and stylish and gave Egyptians lovely appearances.
Ancient Egyptian clothing refers to the clothing styles and materials worn from the end of the Neolithic period around 3100 B.C. until the death of Cleopatra VII around 30 B.C. Egyptians loved to look colorful and had a wide variety of vivid hues in their clothes. Their clothing was very fashionable and comfortable and differed depending on whether it was designed for men, women, and children. There were further divisions of style and clothing on the basis of status and social class.
Men's Clothing
During the Old Kingdom, men usually wore simple garments and clothes. They generally wrapped a skirt around them that was either belted at the waist or was plaited and gathered in the front. These skirts were usually short and were called shendyts. Later, during the Middle Kingdom men switched towards wearing a blouse and petticoat.
Women's Clothing
Ancient Egyptian women usually wore a simple kind of saree-type garment called a kalasarees. Women's dresses were conservative and varied according to their class. The lower hem usually reached the ankle whereas the upper edge was above or below the breast. The length of a women's skirt determined the class to which they belonged. Apart from this, women also used to wear shawls, capes, and decorative ropes that further enhanced their beauty. They also used beads and feathers for decorating their dresses.
Children's Clothing
Children in ancient Egypt wore nothing until they were six years old and would be naked until that age. After six they were allowed to wrap up their bodies with clothes in order to protect them from sun and heat. As children wore no clothing they used to wear jewelry to cover the private parts of their body.
Jewelry in Ancient Egypt
Like clothing, jewelry also had great significance in ancient Egypt. The poor used flowers as a part of jewelry and cheap metals for ornaments. The rich used finely carved gold jewelry embedded with diamonds and rubies. They used luxurious jewelry like this in their hair as well. Bracelets, rings, necklaces, pins, belt buckles, and amulets were also other basic ornaments that were designed, carved, and worn by upper-class people during the ancient Egyptian period.
The Bottom Line
Egyptians wore very fine ornaments and clothes, especially the rich. All these varied according to their class, gender, and age. This once again shows that the ancient Egyptian period can be clearly thought of as a highly-advanced era in which every detail and matter of personal taste was very defined and elaborate.
