Etruria

Cultural development came later to Italy than to the Aegean area. The Greeks colonized southern Italy and Sicily from the later 7th century BC, but it was the Etruscans who introduced a high standard of civilization, in the previous century, to the central region of the peninsula. They called themselves the Rasenna (though in Latin they were known as the Etrusci or Tusci). It is believed that they may have emigrated from Anatolia or possibly from farther east. They quickly developed their culture in their new land and, soon after 700 BC, they were living in an urban society capable of a high standard of building and visual arts. In dress, as in the other applied arts, they drew their inspiration and knowledge from a mixture of sources, chiefly Greek and Oriental.
Etruscan society appears to have had more in common with the Minoan culture than with that of Classical Greece. This was true, for example, of the position of women. Unlike the custom in Greece and Rome, where women were relegated to a submissive, domestic role, in Etruria women shared all the activities of life with men. The wealth of pictorial evidence that exists, chiefly the coloured frescoes and sculpture found in the great burial places such as the necropolis at Tarquinia, depicts women taking full part at banquets, dances, and concerts as well as attending racing, athletic, and other types of contests. These sources also indicate a close affinity of dress with the Minoan, illustrating sewn, fitted garments, bright colouring, rich decoration, and an abundance of beautiful jewelry—a craft at which the Etruscans excelled, especially in gold. Nevertheless, Etruscan dress, for both sexes, demonstrates a marriage between East and West, blending Eastern features from Egypt, Syria, and Crete with a later Ionian-style draped attire probably derived from the contemporary Greek colonists in southern Italy. Thus, Etruscans can be seen wearing both draped, pinned tunics and fitted, sewn ones, or such Greek styles as the chlamys, himation, or chiton in conjunction with footwear with Middle Eastern-style turned-up toes. Some Etruscan garments presaged later styles; for example, the tebenna, a semicircular mantle, was an early version of the Roman toga, and a decorative collar derived from Egypt anticipated a later Byzantine version.


Etruscan musicians wearing tunics, cloaks similar to the Greek chlamys, and sandals. Detail from a … Scala/Art Resource, New York City

The Aegean:Minoan and Mycenaean dress

The Aegean region and in particular the island of Crete, which was inhabited from about 6000 BC, can be considered the cradle of western European culture. Settlers came to Crete from areas farther east—from Anatolia, North Africa, Syria, and Palestine. By 2500 BC the Cretan civilization was becoming established and, as a maritime people with extensive trade in the Mediterranean and the Middle East, was influenced by many sources. The Cretans created a society and a dress style of their own, one dissimilar from the earlier one of Egypt and the later of Greece. The greatest and most prosperous years were from 1750 to 1400 BC; this was the time of the building of the great palaces, notably Knossos, from where the remains of coloured frescoes, painted vases, and sculpture in marble, terra-cotta, and coloured ceramics have been excavated and are on display in the museums of Iráklion and Athens. Even finer and more complete frescoes have been preserved from the more recent excavations of the Minoan city on the island of Thera (Thíra), an island largely destroyed in the cataclysmic volcanic eruption of about 1500 BC.
Cretan dress is characterized by its vivid colouring, elegance, and sophistication. It is also notable for the gaiety of feminine attire, typical of a society where women—unlike that of classical Greece—are depicted side-by-side with men, taking part in all the activities of life and not relegated to the domestic background.


Men's garments were few. Chief of these was a loincloth of wool, leather, or linen, tightly belted at the waist and arranged as a short, elaborately decorated skirt. The belt was drawn tight to contrast the slender waist (presuming that the man had one) with the masculine breadth of chest. By 1750 BC women were wearing a long bell-shaped skirt, often in a series of flounces, over a loincloth; with this, they wore a bolero-like jacket that had elbow-length sleeves but was open in front, leaving the breasts bare. In the later period a boned bodice was worn, constricting the upper torso but accentuating the full, bare breasts above. (This is the first recorded example in Europe of corseting constriction of the figure and remained an isolated instance for centuries.)
The Cretans liked bright colours, and their dress was vividly embroidered and decorated. The hair of both sexes was worn long, looped and braided and dressed with jewels, pearls, and ribbons. The Cretans bathed frequently, oiling their bodies afterward. Men were generally clean-shaven.
Outdoors both sexes wore sandals or shoes. In winter calf-length boots were adopted, and short woolen, fur-lined cloaks were fastened by pins around the shoulders.
With the collapse of the Minoan civilization in Crete about 1400 BC, a new culture arose on the mainland in the Peloponnese, notably in the maritime principalities of Mycenae, Tiryns, and Pylos. As the frescoes from the palace of Tiryns illustrate, the costume was similar but richer still.



Priest-king wearing elaborate loincloth attached to a tight, broad belt. Fresco from the palace at … Andre Held, Switzerland