Stola

Stola (Greek: στολή; stola) — a type of ancient Roman women 's tunic,which was worn by matrons over the lower," inner " tunic (tunica interior). The lower tunic was worn over the head of the body and reached to the ankles. Since it was worn by matrons,the table was a symbol of legal marriage. Also from this word came the term "femina stolata",which denoted honorary married Roman women. The word "table" itself comes from the Greek language (στολή) and originally meant any clothing,both women's and men's.

The bottom of the table could be richly decorated with embroidery. Sometimes the upper part of the fabric could be bent in the manner of a peplos,but more often the edges of the fabric were fastened on the shoulders with fibulas or buttons,a row of which could reach the elbows. The table,unlike the inner tunic,had no sleeves. It was belted well above the waist,while creating a set of folds. During the reign of Emperor Tiberius (42-37),it began to go out of fashion.

Who wore the stola

The stola was not simply a dress, but a social sign of a free married Roman woman. In literary and visual tradition it is connected with the image of the matrona, lawful marriage, domestic dignity and public respectability. The stola is therefore important not only as a garment, but as part of the language of status: it separates the respectable wife from maiden, slave or theatrical dress.

Actual practice could be more flexible than ideal descriptions suggest. But the meaning of the stola appears in combination with the under-tunic, belt, veil or palla, hairstyle, jewellery and restrained gestures. Without that social context, a long garment becomes merely an upper tunic and loses its connection with Roman ideas of marriage and dignity.

Cut and wearing

The stola is usually understood as a long upper garment worn over a tunic. Its silhouette came not from complex tailoring, but from the length of the cloth, shoulder line, belt and folds. The lower edge could be decorated, while the upper part could be fixed with seams, ties or fibulae depending on the version.

The main difference from a simple tunic is not one separate feature, but the whole image: more formal, covered and status-marked. Ankle length, a high belt line and vertical folds emphasized the woman's position and separated the stola from work clothing, short tunics and theatrical dress. In statuary this difference is often conveyed not by pattern-cutting, but by pose, veil and the full composition of the figure.

How to read images

When reading images of the stola, it is important to look not only at the long dress, but at the whole female image. Veil position, hairstyle, folds, shoes, jewellery and gestures help determine whether the figure is a matrona, goddess, allegory or theatrical character. The same silhouette can have different meanings on a tombstone, statue or relief.

In funerary and statuary tradition the stola often marks not an everyday detail, but the moral and family status of a woman. The under-tunic, belt line, covered head and calm pose work together: they show that clothing in Rome was part of social reputation, not only a set of cloth and ornaments.

Related topics

Tunic,Matrona,Fibula,A woman in Ancient Rome

Literature

• Stola // Brockhaus and Efron Small Encyclopedic Dictionary.