SJ

Text Hist: Crete (Minoans) and Greece

Crete and Greece

c. 2900 – 300 BC


Crete: 

  • was home to Minoans

  • Trading culture with the mollusks that excrete purple dye for fabric with other cultures- very expensive commodidty 

  • Men and women were equal in society

  • Basic outer garments for men included wrapped skirts with a tassel suspended at the center front.

  • Both men and women wore tunics that had decorative bands.

  • From Minoan art, it appears there were three types of skirts for women (likely worn for celebrations or ceremonies and not every day):

    • A skirt of uncertain construction that appears like a wide-legged trouser.

    • A flared skirt ornamented with horizontal bands of color.

    • A skirt made of tiers of ruffles.

      • The bodice shown with these skirts is often depicted as being cut below and baring the breasts. However, scholars are not sure if this style is limited to figures depicting goddesses.

Greece: 

  • Periods:

    • A Dark Age , of which little is known, preceded the Archaic Period (c.800-500 BC) By the end of the dark age, men and women were wearing a type of tunic.

    • Mycenaean Domination: 1400–1200 BC

    • Dark Age of Greece: 1100-800 BC

    • Archaic Period: 800–500 BC

    • Classical Period: 500–323 BC

  • Most clothes were made of wool or imported Egyptian linen 

  • The loincloth, called in Greek perizoma, was an undergarment for men and was worn by male and female athletes 

    • some women wore a band to support the breasts

  • The doric peplos, worn during the archaic period, is represented as closely fitted, with an over fold at the top edge, probably made of wool. 

    • A similar short tunic worn by men was known as the chitoniskos

  • fillet - band of fabric or leather worn around the head, could be adorned with ornaments

  • Fibulas- metal safety pin-type things used for fastening garments

  • The Greek name for the tunic was chiton.

    • Ionic chiton: 

      • wrapped around the body and pinned at the shoulder and down the arm. 

      • worn from c. 550-480 BC

    • Doric chiton:

      • single fastening on each shoulder and less fabric was 

      • worn from c. 400 to 100 BC

    • A wide variety of decorative effects could be created by varying the length of the overfold or belting the chiton at different places, or placing wraps over the garment.

  • The tunic for the working man was simple. Called an exomis, it could be pinned to allow full freedom to one arm.

  • Worn by both men and women, the himation was a wrapped shawl that left one arm uncovered. The only garment worn by most philosophers.

  • The cloak called the chlamys fastened on one shoulder with a fibula and the hat called the petasos were worn for protection against the weather.

  • Armor Pieces

    • Lots of smaller pieces not fully joined together- not as protective

    • Cuirass, Chiton, Reticulated Helmet, often with red plume/mohawk atop, Gauntlets- on arms, Grieves, Sandals, Sword, Shield

  • Jewelry like gold and garnet earrings, and golden head wreaths were worn