Himation
A himation was an Ancient Greek rectangular cloak worn over the chiton or sometimes directly on the body. It had no sleeves or fasteners: the cloth was held by draping, arm position and the weight of the folds.
In brief:
- the himation was outer clothing, while the chiton was the main garment beneath it;
- it was worn by men and women;
- its appearance depended on draping rather than complex tailoring;
- in art, the himation often helps identify social setting, pose and ideals of behaviour.
Himation and chiton: difference
The chiton was a garment worn on the body and usually belted. The peplos was also worn on the body and fastened at the shoulders. The himation was an outer wrap, draped over a chiton or peplos, around the torso or over one shoulder. These garments therefore served different purposes and should not be treated as substitutes in reconstruction.
Statue of the Muse in the Himatia. Roman copy of the Greek original. Archaeological Museum,Istanbul. 2nd century AD
Sophocles in the Himatia. Roman copy of a Greek statue. 5th century BC
Statue of Alexander the Great in Himatia. Archaeological Museum,Istanbul. 2nd century BCGreek art shows many ways of arranging the himation rather than one mandatory style. A wearer could pass one end over the left shoulder, take the cloth across the back and under the right arm, and return the remaining end over the left shoulder. Other arrangements wrapped the lower body or covered both shoulders. The result depended on the cloth's size, weight and the activity of the wearer.
The himation was not normally fastened with a brooch. Literary sources and surviving images associate controlled drapery with respectable public bearing, while freer arrangements appear in travel, work and domestic settings. Roman garments such as the palla and toga developed in a different civic context and should not be treated as direct copies.
The scheme of wearing himatiya in women
Himatiya patternHow a himation was worn
There was no single compulsory draping pattern. One common arrangement placed an end over the left shoulder, carried the cloth across the back and under the right arm, then returned the free end over the left shoulder. Other versions covered both shoulders or wrapped only the lower body. The appearance depended on the size and weight of the cloth, as well as the wearer's age, gender, activity and setting.
Related topics
Literature
- M. Bieber. Entwicklungsgeschichte der griechischen Tracht. Berlin, 1967.
- A. Pekridou-Gorecki. Mode im antiken Griechenland: Textile Fertigung und Kleidung. Munich, 1989.
- L. Llewellyn-Jones, ed. Women's Dress in the Ancient Greek World. London, 2002.
- L. Cleland et al., eds. The Clothed Body in the Ancient World. Oxford, 2005.
- M. M. Lee. Body, Dress, and Identity in Ancient Greece. Cambridge, 2015.
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