Textiles and Gender in Antiquity: From the Orient to the Mediterranean

This volume explores the relationship between textiles and gender in antiquity, highlighting continuities and differences across time and space. It challenges the linear narrative of textile production and demonstrates how garments can express gender identity. The textual sources and illustrations provide evidence of the intimate link between dress and gender in antiquity.

Format: Hardback
Length: 328 pages
Publication date: 12 November 2020
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

This comprehensive volume delves into the intricate relationship between textiles and gender throughout three millennia in antiquity, exploring both continuities and disparities across time and space. It sheds light on the multifaceted interplay of gender, identity, textile production, and utilization, highlighting notable aspects at various levels. From the intricate process of transforming raw materials into fabric to the act of wearing garments and the construction of personal identity, the interplay of gender, identity, textile production, and utilization is evident.

It is worth noting that textile production has often been perceived as a linear progression, moving from a domestic, female-dominated activity to a more commercial or industrial, male-centered mode. However, the reality is more complex, with numerous modes of production coexisting and the process of textile making not easily attributed to one sex or the other. Similarly, textiles that are transformed into garments often exhibit a 'unisex shape, but are worn to express the gender of the wearer.

The detailed textual source material and the rich illustrations featured in this volume provide compelling evidence of the intimate connection between dress and gender in the visual and written records of antiquity. The contributors demonstrate how it was common practice in both art and literature to use specific garments to characterize one sex or the other, while also subverting these characterizations by suggesting that they display features typically associated with the opposite gender.

This volume offers valuable insights into the complex tapestry of textiles and gender in antiquity, shedding light on the enduring legacies and resonances that continue to shape our modern world. It serves as a testament to the enduring power of clothing and the ways in which it can be used to express and challenge societal norms and expectations.

Weight: 686g
Dimension: 163 x 241 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781350141490