Headdress history

The headdress once served as a symbol of authority, power. For example, in Ancient Egypt only the pharaoh could wear a large headdress made of striped cloth, on which he wore the crown. All the other classes, except the slaves, were content with wigs of vegetable fiber. The richer the person, the bigger the wig and the more magnificent curls.

In ancient Greece, men and women went bareheaded, only during the trip they wore a low round felt hat with fields (a quick-footed Hermes in that hat was depicted as being sent by a god in frescoes and in sculptures). In the Middle Ages, men and women wore capes and hooded raincoats. The hoods had diversified shapes. Sometimes the end of a hood was so long that it hung below the waist.

In the Middle Ages, headdresses became ornaments and luxury items. People decorated their headdresses with feathers (bunches of feathers), furs, ribbons, and jewelry.

Ladies and some men wore the so-called genin, a tall cone-shaped headdress. The genin is supposed to have been devised by Isabella Bavarian and made fashionable in 1395. Only a hundred years later it had disappeared from secular clothing, but it had not ceased to exist at all when masons began using it. The skeleton of the genin princesses was 3 feet tall (about 1), the court was up to 2 feet (about 60 cm). A skeleton was made of sturdy paper or starched fabric and was fitted to silk or other expensive fabrics. The transparent veil came down from the rear of the genin. It often covered the person. All the combed hair was just the little triangle, in the middle of the forehead. They were of such height, that sometimes it was necessary to cut doors in addition. Even the heads of heretics condemned to burning were crowned with a cap with the sharp point of cardboard on which tongues of fire and demons were painted. Later, the genin is shaped like a half moon or two angles.

From the East, the fashion for turbans had reached Europe. Turbans have received a wide circulation. They were carried by both men and women. The Persians called a turban a cloth, which tied a head. The Persians spread this headdress throughout the Islamic world.

In the 17th and 18th centuries the turban disappeared from European fashion and reappeared only during Napoleon’s campaign to Egypt (an empire-style fashion) and once again during World War II.

In Central Asia time workers and beggars were not allowed to wear turbans, however all other men aged about 5 years and up wore turbans. The turban could be as a fancy dress hat and also as a casual headdress, and it could be easily transformed into a belt.

In the Middle Ages in Europe, the cap became available. At first it was used for bathing and as a nightcap by both women and men. The man’s cap could have a long top, which hung to the side. Subsequently, men refused to wear this headdress, and only flames wore it until the late 19th century.

In the 14th and 15th centuries, French fashion dominated Europe. The caps were long and tapered like cones. The men’s caps were completely decorated with peacock feathers. At that time, felt hats made by Russian craftsmen used to be very popular.

Since the old days, Eastern Slavs of all social levels wore caps that extended slightly to the top. The peasants had caps with a narrow high crown on top made of felt. There were also low-cut hats with a round leather band and a velvet or brocade crown, known as murmolki. Dandies and tsar’s guards (streltsi) in the 17th century wore caps with a low fur band and a soft velvet crown pointed high up.