Oriental Institute

Nykauinpu and his wife, Hemetradjet.

Ancient Egyptians were extremely interested in fashion and its changes. This seems evident from trends seen in tomb scenes where the costumes and styles of the upper classes were soon copied by the lower classes. The most common fabric for clothing (both women's and men's) was linen. Because linen is very hard to dye, most clothes were off-white, so color was added with heavy beaded collars and other jewelry.

The standard apparel of women from the Old Kingdom into the New Kingdom was the sheath dress, which could be worn strapless or with two broad shoulder straps. Most examples of these dresses reach the ankles. Most sources depict women wearing impossibly tight and impractical dresses, suggesting that the representations are idealized to emphasize the sensuality of the female body.

D. Brewer and E. Teeter

Consider the changing styles of dress for women and men.

The most ancient garment worn by men was a kilt that was made of a rectangular piece of linen cloth wrapped rather loosely around the hips, leaving the knees uncovered. As a rule, it was wrapped around the body from right to left so that the edge of the skirt would be in the front. The upper edge was tucked behind the tie, or girdle, that held the kilt together. This garment was the standard male attire for all classes from peasants to royalty, though the quality of the linen and the exact style varied according to one's purchasing power. Some of the fancier, more expensive kilts had bias-cut edges, pleated decorative panels, or fringed edges, and were made of finer, softer linen. By late Dynasty 4 and early Dynasty 5, it became fashionable to wear the kilt longer and wider or to wear it with an inverted box pleat that appeared as an erect triangular front piece. Though styles changed over time, the simple kilt remained the standard garb for scribes, servants, and peasants.

Oriental Institute, University of Chicago, OIM 7189

Shoe. Rush. Ptolemaic-Roman, 2nd century B.C.-2nd century A.D. Fayum, Grave H 17. Gift of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 1901-2.

In the winter, the middle and upper classes wore a heavy cloak extending from neck to ankle, which could be wrapped around and folded or clasped in front. Depictions of such cloaks extend from Archaic to Ptolemaic times. Although sandals of rush and reeds are known, regardless of the occasion or social class, Egyptians apparently often went barefoot.

During the New Kingdom, when Egypt extended its political influence east into Asia, Egyptian fashion changed radically. With the influx of trade and ideas from the east, fashions became more varied, changed more quickly, and often took on an eastern flavor. Men and women of the upper classes, for example, wore layers of fine, nearly transparent kilts and long- or short sleeved shirts that tied at the neck, or draped themselves in billowing robes of fine linen that extended from neck to ankle and were drawn in at the waist by a sash. The better examples of these garments were heavily pleated, and some were ornamented with colored ball fringe.

Oriental Institute

Review the styles and fashions of the ancient Egyptians.

For most of the Pharaonic Period, women wore their hair (or wigs) long and straight; after Dynasty 18 hairstyles became more elaborate. During all periods men wore their hair short, but they also wore wigs, the style befitting the occasion. These wigs were made of human hair or plant fiber. Both genders wore copious amounts of perfumes and cosmetics made of ground minerals and earth pigments. Fashion statements were made with accessories such as jewelry and ribbons. Men also carried staffs that marked status and social class.