Fashion is not merely a form of clothing; it is a reflection of identity, aesthetic understanding, and societal values. In Ephesus, fashion reveals the culture and taste of the period, visible from the attire of statues to the traces of daily life. Each fabric, piece of jewelry, and ornament serves as a heritage carrying the richness and creativity of Ephesus into the present day.
Ephesus, as one of the most important port cities of ancient times, held a pioneering position not only in trade and culture but also in fashion. Clothing went beyond being an indispensable part of daily life to become a powerful symbol reflecting social identity and status. Ancient sources specifically imply that Ephesus women were quite fond of fashion and that the Ephesus marketplace (agora) was overflowing with colorful silk fabrics. Below, the styles of women’s and men’s clothing in ancient Ephesus, the types of fabrics used, textile production, and the relationship between clothing and social status are examined under headings.
Styles of Women’s and Men’s Clothing in Ancient Ephesus
In ancient Ephesus, women and men wore clothing appropriate to the Greek and Roman fashions of the era. The basic garment for both women and men was the long shirt/tunic with a rectangular cut known as the Chiton (Khiton). Formed by fastening two pieces of fabric at the shoulders with pins or buttons, the chiton created a cylindrical garment form. During the Archaic period, typically everyone wore long chitons, while travelers, soldiers, and artisans preferred knee-length short chitons for practicality. By the Classical period, Ephesus began to assert its weight in fashion; combining Ionian and Dorian dress elements, it became fashionable to wear chitons in a looser, wider, and draped form. In the Hellenistic period, Ephesus was again one of the trend-setting cities. During this time, it became common for women to tie their chiton belts higher than the chest (high waist style) and wear sleeveless chitons. Especially from the 5th century BCE onwards, Ephesus became a fashion pioneer in Anatolia, with other cities in Ionia following the clothing preferences of Ephesus. During the Hellenistic period, the simple white clothing fashion of previous centuries turned again towards colorful and patterned fabrics, with thin, transparent silk garments becoming preferred over wool and linen.
Over the main garment chiton, the large outerwear called himation (cloak/mantle) was used by both women and men. Himation was a rectangular shawl that was wrapped around the body diagonally; its ends were thrown over the shoulder to hang freely in the front and back. Peplos, on the other hand, was a type of woolen garment especially used by women during the Archaic period (before chiton became more common in the Ionian region), forming a fold at the upper part. Youth, travelers, and soldiers wore a lighter cloak called chlamys (khlamys); fastened on a single shoulder with a pin known as a fibula, this cloak was rectangular in the classical period and oval-cut in the Hellenistic period. For workers, slaves, and soldiers, a practical garment called eksomis was utilized; it was a sleeveless tunic that left one shoulder open, fastened on the shoulder with a fibula. These garments were the basic clothing of the Greek world and continued to be worn by the Ephesians during the Roman period.
When it came to the Roman Empire period, clothing styles in Ephesus were enriched with some new garments. Men generally wore an inner garment called tunica (tunic) in daily life; the tunic was a shirt made of wool or cotton fabric, could be short-sleeved or sleeveless, and was fitted at the waist with a belt. Men's tunics were above the knee, while women's tunics extended to the ankle; a man's tunic reaching the feet was frowned upon. Freeborn Ephesus women wore a long dress called stola over their inner tunics (tunica interior); it was traditional for married women's stolas to have buttons on the sleeves. Although Hellenistic garments like chiton and himation continued to be used in Roman-period Ephesus, the toga, specific to Rome, gained importance as formal and upper-class attire. When young men stepped into puberty, they began wearing a white toga in ceremonies, symbolizing their transition to adult status. Although the general populace (especially Greek-origin Ephesians) often preferred a simpler cloak called pallium over the toga, for Roman citizens, the toga was a mark of identity.
Fabrics Used, Weaving, and Dyeing Techniques
The types of fabric used to produce clothing items in ancient Ephesus were primarily wool, linen, cotton, and silk. The most commonly used material for making garments was fabric woven from sheep wool. Quality wool, especially from the city of Miletus, was exported and became renowned throughout the Mediterranean world. Linen was also a frequently used fabric; thin weavings obtained from the flax plant were preferred in the Aegean and Mediterranean regions because they kept cool in summer. The finest linen fabrics were distributed throughout the Mediterranean from centers like Laodicea, Tarsus, Damascus, and Alexandria. As a port city, Ephesus had access to the best linen and wools thanks to this commercial network. Cotton, especially during the Roman Empire, was another raw material used in tunics, mixed with wool. Cotton fabrics came from the East (probably from India); in Roman textile production, cotton was popular because it provided a soft and light texture.
Silk fabrics were the most luxurious and expensive textile products. Raw silk was brought from China, the homeland of sericulture, to the West via Anatolia, and processed here to be sold to Ephesus and the Greek world. Ancient sources indicate that silk was a valuable commodity, likened to the oil of the East. Silk fabrics, with their transparency and graceful drape, were especially favored by wealthy Ephesus women. Totally pure silk fabric was known as holosericum, and garments made from this rare fabric were extraordinarily expensive. Due to the high cost, silk threads were often woven mixed with cotton; the mixed silk was called “subserica.” In fact, during the reign of Emperor Tiberius (14-37 AD), it was prohibited for men to wear pure silk, as it was considered wasteful and luxurious. Though not as much as silk, brightly purple dyed fabrics were also considered expensive and of high status. The famous Tyrian purple dye obtained from the sea snail was known in the ancient world as a “royal color” due to its laborious production and non-fading brightness, and it was adopted by the Romans as a symbol of imperial authority and high status. Clothes dyed with purple were especially worn by statesmen and the imperial family, and there were even periods when the use of purple was forbidden except for the emperor. Therefore, nobles and wealthy individuals in Ephesus sometimes emphasized their status with shawls or ribbons dyed in Tyrian purple.
Weaving was an important part of household economics and craftsmanship in Ephesus. In ancient times, women generally wove at home on vertical looms to meet their families' fabric needs. These vertical looms, which were primitive but efficient tools, kept warp threads taut with heavy clay tablets (loom weights) attached to the bottom. For example, since approximately 2x4 meters of fabric might be needed for a chiton dress, weaving was a labor and time-intensive task. Techniques such as fastening lead or terracotta weights to the ends of fabrics helped create more regular pleats. Dyeing processes used entirely natural source dyes: Reds were from madder root and murex snail (Tyrian purple), yellows from saffron flowers, blues from indigo or woad, and blacks and browns from walnut shells and iron oxide. Frescoes found in Ephesus indicate that especially on women’s clothing, bright saffron yellows, blues, light greens, and lilacs were in vogue. Dyeing workshops (dyeries) were important enterprises in ancient cities, and was usually applied to yarns before weaving. Thus, in the vibrant markets of Ephesus, one could find fabrics of every color, design, and texture.
The Relationship Between Clothing and Social Status
In ancient Ephesus society, clothing was one of the most visible indicators reflecting a person's social status and identity. The cut, color, and even the way garments were worn would reveal if a person was a citizen, freeborn, or slave, or which class they belonged to. For example, during the Roman period, the pallium, an everyday shoulder shawl, was considered an ordinary garment that did not denote any status. In contrast, those with the privileges of Roman citizenship demonstrated their status by wearing a toga at official ceremonies. The toga was a special garment that only Roman citizens could wear, attributing an exclusive position to the wearer. Some details on the toga directly symbolized rank and position. A wide purple stripe (toga praetexta) added to the edge of the toga was worn by children and high-ranking officials (such as curule magistrates) and indicated a public official. The completely purple toga picta was worn for special occasions by victorious generals or emperors, symbolizing the highest status. Even the tunics and accessories worn under the toga carried significance: For instance, the calceus patricius, a high-topped red boot, was the footwear of Roman patrician (noble) class men. Similarly, senators wore special shoes called calceus senatorius that wrapped the foot to the ankle, which indicates the figure portrayed wearing a toga in Ephesus Museum belonged to a Roman senator.
There were also subtleties in women’s clothing that expressed their societal position. A free and wealthy Ephesus woman might wear bright-colored garments made of quality linen or silk and complement them with gold jewelry, whereas a lower-class woman or a slave typically wore coarser woolen garments, close to the natural color of linen, plain and uncolored. While the jewelry of the wealthy was made of gold, poor and middle-class women wore jewelry made of bronze, glass, or terracotta with gold gilding. Elite Ephesus women would adorn their hair with pearls and ribbons to create complex buns, which also served as a status symbol, considering such showy hair styles required regular care and servant labor. During the prosperous times of the imperial period, men besides women started to use color in clothing, and noble men did not hesitate to display their status with clothes detailed in purple and red. On the other hand, the clothing of slaves was as economical and standard as possible: They typically wore simple tunics or eksomis made of cheap coarse wool and generally wandered barefoot or used very simple leather shoes instead of sandals. In some cases, slaves working in public spaces wore uniforms emblazoned with the emblem or mark of their masters (such practices were known for the slaves of large homes in Rome). In conclusion, it could be said that clothing in ancient Ephesus served as a “identity card”. Roman authors noted that it was possible to deduce a person's social rank, occupation, and even moral status by observing their attire. The concept of displaying status through clothing is explained by comparing modern judicial robes with colored stripes with the ancient toga praetexta tradition: Just as the colored stripes on judicial robes indicate rank today, the purple stripe added to the toga similarly identified high officials in Rome. In summary, in ancient Ephesus, fashion and clothing were not merely a matter of aesthetics or necessity but a visible language of societal order and hierarchy.
