[Ansteorra] Something easy to make for War

[willowdewisp at juno.com]

It is the time of War and many of you just realized that you don’t have enough costumes to last the week. Never fear there is a fast and cheap solution, Byzantine!! It is easy to make and easy to wear and can take not much fabric. Click on the sites and you should go to pictures. I didn't think you would need "how to's" since the tunics are so simple but if you do write me. The solf linen or lines look loosely woven material is perfect for this. If you have something that became too solf when you washed it is perfect. You can do nice colors also. Remember when our fighters come off the field a lovely blue dress makes them feel better. I had a dress like that and fighter would just stand by me and feel refreshed. 
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The Byzantine look stays somewhat the same from the Coptic period to the fall of the Empire to the Turks. The look consists of a tunic or tunica, the dalmatic, a cloak and boots or shoes. All classes wore the same shaped garment. It was the quality of the fabric and the trim that set them 
apart. 
http://library.thinkquest.org/04oct/01181/Byzantine%20costume.pdf
 
Early picture of a shepherd http://t771unit2.pbworks.com/w/page/6766428/Chapter%208%3A%20Early%20Christian%20and%20Byzantine%20Art
The tunica was a derivation of the ancient Roman tunica talaris,
or tunic to the ankles. They were loose and the active person would tie the tunic up with a belt and pull it up so it fell to the knees. The sleeve length would vary according to the weather and class of the person wearing the tunica                         . 
Egyptian (Coptic) 
Tunic, Tunic with Dionysiac … 
4-5th century 
The Metropolitan Museum of Art …
http://amica.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/AMICO~1~1~105506~96877:Tunic-with-Dionysiac-Ornament?sort=INITIALSORT_CRN,OCS,AMICOID
 
Coptic tunics were trimmed with Clavi (stripes) and segmentae (roundels and squares) were done in a tapestry weave and were the most common type of trim. Colors in the trims were as follows: natural, tan, light and dark brown, yellow, gold, pink, red, maroon, light and dark blue, cobalt blue, aqua, light and dark green, yellow-green, orange, coral, purple and black. The trim was sometimes very colorful. 
http://www.durolitum.co.uk/articles/tunics.html
 
 Here are some patterns for decoration
http://comitatus.net/romantunics.html
 
 
 
The tunica was usally was made in undyed linen or undyed wool and would be in a plain weave. This is fine wool, light weight and with a smooth finish. Silk was also used for these garments. The most common colors were colors; red, ochre, yellow and orange. I found one sold at an auction house that is in madder red. This red is the common red in the Roman Empire.
 
The Dalmatica was an over robe most often worn by the upper classes and sometimes by the common people.  Emperor Justinian is seen in the Ravenna mosaics wearing a dalmatic
It has long tight sleeves and comes down to the knees. This would be worn over a tunic
or shirt and was usually belted.
 
The dalmatica would be of a solid color with lavish trim on neck, cuffs, hem, and upper arm
seam, side slits and occasionally medallions above the knees. This trim was encrusted with jewels and could be more tapestry woven strips and medallions or embroidery 
For the lower classes, not servants, but lower than nobility it was usual for these decorative strips to be cut from scraps or short lengths of expensive brocades.  
 
Fabrics for this would be fine linen, wool, cotton and for the wealthy, silk. The traditional patrician costume consisted of a dalmatic with wide sleeves over a tunic with tight sleeves and high boots. The fabrics that could be found in Byzantium were many and varied often having Patters,
 
The sleeve hem, bottom hem and neck of the dalmatica would be heavily decorated. Embroidery, precious stones and pearls would be used. Pearls would outline all the major portions of the decoration. Pearls and beads would be used inside the decoration. If the garment was not made of a patterned fabric, decoration would be used to give the impression that it was. 
 
Up to the 12th century pants were worn in the Byzantine Empire and hose were also worn.
 
The most common foot wear is sandals. We can see in the Ravenna mosaics that men seem to be wearing sandals with socks.
 
The sandals had straps over a thick sole. The military boot was used by soldiers. Special colors showed rank. Red sandals marked the Emperor; blue shoes, a sebastokrator, who is a co-ruler ; and green shoes aprotovestiarios, the person in charge of the Emperor’s private wardrobe.The private wardrobe also included part of the Byzantine emperor's private treasury, and controlled an extensive staff
 
Cloak came in two basic types. The everyday cloak was usually rectangular in shape. Its dimensions were typically the length double the width, though length differed depending on what the wearer would be doing. It was fastened at the shoulder
 
On formal occasions a cope was worn. A cope is cut in a half circle and in Byzantine was draping it across the chest left to right and secured with a brooch on the right shoulder. A tablion a rectangle decoration that denoted rank was seen on men’s copes. The color and decoration showed the rank. 
Women's costume in Byzantium didn't change too much over the centuries either. It basicallyconsisted of the tunica, the stola, and shoes. 
 
The ladies tunica was long and had tight sleeves that were close to the body. It was considered immodest to show the arm above the wrist. Working class women were not limited and showed their arms. 
The neck would be cut either in a boat style, V-neck or in a scoop neckline. The necks appear to be simply rolled over to be finish. 
The tunica garment could be of fine wool, linen or silk. It is interesting to note that according to the sources I have been using the tunica for both men and women before the Roman period was not wool. There might have been some cultural prejudges about wool. The Ancient Egyptians thought wool to be unclean. 
Women’s tunicas were more form-fitting.  They wore Girdles rather than belts. When a belt was worn it could be worn at least three places just below the bosom at the natural waistline, or just below the waistline. 
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Costume_History/Byzantine
 
 
The Tunica could be plain or have trimming. The trimming would be around the foot of the garment, the neck, and the wrists. It might have Clavi, in varying lengths. The most common would be Clavi to almost the hem, but when you have this kind of Clavi you would not have trimming at the foot. . Colours were varied, lavender, purple, pale green, light, medium and dark blue, pink, deep red, burgundy, gold, brown, black and white
 
The stola was a garment only worn by women. In the 5th century, the stola was wide and had no separate sleeves. A sleeve effect was gotten from the excess width of the stola being belted at the waist and bloused over the belt. This is how it was worn in ancient Rome.
 
Trimming was also very lavish and were similar to the tunica. The primary colours were purple and gold, but these colors were reserved for the upper classes. Other colors included deep blue, rose and white. 
 
The Superhumeral is a decorative collar worn over the stola. The Superhumeral would be edged with pearls and covered with gold work and jewels. It was decorated in all
respects just like the men's version. Only the Empress seemed to wear the full Superhumeral, however the smaller jeweled collar was worn by the upper classes throughout the time Empire.
 
The Byzantine look was adopted in Russia and people of the merchant class starting wearing smaller versions of this collar. 
 
Shoes seem to be little slippers or sandals. 
 
Cloaks were semicircular and often had edges finished on the loom.  
Empress Ariadne wore a full length semicircular cloak with a picture of her son
embroidered in pearls in the tablion. The cloak was also edged with a double row of
truly large pearls. The tablions were reserved for the Empress alone, but the semicircular cloak was worn by all classes.
 
Recourses
Article was written by Dawn Vukson - Van Beek. 
http://library.thinkquest.org/04oct/01181/Byzantine%20costume.pdf  
This site is very good for pictures
 
Victoria and Albert Museum. Dept. of Textiles; Kendrick, A. F. (Albert Frank), 1872-
Subject: Victoria and Albert Museum. Dept. of Textiles; Textile fabrics -- Egypt Catalogs
Publisher: London : H.M.S.O.
http://archive.org/stream/catalogueoftexti01vict#page/n5/mode/2up
Interesting book but hard to read. You will need to go back of book for pictures
Coptic Tunics in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum Studies M. S. Dimand
Vol. 2, No. 2 (May, 1930), pp. 239-252
Published by: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1522750
To read this you will need to join jstor but seems to be free. 
 
http://www.scribd.com/doc/35731617/The-Super-Humeral
 
Costume History/Byzantine
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Costume_History/Byzantine
 
Latter Roman tunics
http://www.durolitum.co.uk/articles/tunics.html
 
 
This is a Study guide and you will have to scroll down, but it has a simple pattern for the paludamentum w/ tablion, dalmatic, tunic, clavi.
http://www.lacitycollege.edu/academic/departments/theatreacademy/costume/400studyguide.htm
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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