How they dressed in the old days The old clothes of the Russian nobility in their cut generally resembled the clothes of people of the lower class, although they differed greatly in the quality of material and decoration. The body was fitted with a wide shirt, which did not reach the knees, made of plain canvas or silk, depending on the wealth of the owner. In an elegant shirt, usually red, the edges and chest were embroidered with gold and silks, a richly decorated collar was fastened at the top with silver or gold buttons (it was called a "necklace"). In simple, cheap shirts, the buttons were copper or were replaced with cufflinks with loops. The shirt was released over the underwear. Short ports or trousers were worn on the legs without a cut, but with a knot that allowed them to be pulled or expanded in the belt at will, and with pockets (zep). Pants were made of taffeta, silk, cloth, as well as coarse woolen fabric or canvas. Over the shirt and trousers, a narrow sleeveless zipun made of silk, taffeta or dye was worn, with a narrow small collar fastened on. Zipun reached to the knees and usually served as home clothes. The usual and widespread type of outerwear worn on a zipun was a caftan with sleeves reaching to the heels. In elegant caftans, a pearl necklace was sometimes attached behind a standing collar, and a "wrist" decorated with gold embroidery and pearls was fastened to the edges of the sleeves; the floors were trimmed with lace embroidered with silver or gold. Among the caftans were distinguished by their purpose: dining rooms, riding, rain, "meek" (funeral). Winter caftans made with fur were called "shrouds". A zipun was sometimes worn "feryaz" (ferrez), which was an outer garment without a collar, reaching to the ankles, with long sleeves tapering to the wrist; it was fastened in front with buttons or ties. Winter quilts were made with fur, and summer ones with a simple lining. In winter, sometimes sleeveless quilts were worn under the caftan. Fancy fries were made of velvet, satin, taffeta, damask, cloth and were decorated with silver lace. The most elegant clothing was a fur coat. She was not only worn when going out into the cold, but the custom allowed the owners to sit in fur coats even when receiving guests. Simple fur coats were made of sheepskin or with hare fur, the quality was higher for martens and squirrels; noble and wealthy people had fur coats with sable, fox, beaver or ermine fur. Fur coats were covered with cloth, taffeta, satin, velvet, obiar or simple dye, decorated with pearls, stripes and fastened with buttons with loops or long laces with tassels at the end. "Russian" fur coats had a turn-down fur collar. "Polish" fur coats were sewn with a narrow collar, with fur cuffs and were fastened at the neck only with a cuff (double metal button).
How they used to dress in the old days. The upper women's clothing was a long cloth opaša, which had a long row of pewter, silver or gold buttons from top to bottom. Under the long sleeves of the farm, slots for the arms were made under the armpits, a wide round fur collar was fastened around the neck, covering the chest and shoulders. The hem and armholes of the opash were decorated with an embroidered braid. A long sundress with sleeves or without sleeves, with armholes was widespread; the front slit was fastened from top to bottom with buttons. A quilted jacket was worn on a sundress. On their heads, married women wore "hairs" in the form of a small cap, which rich women made of gold or silk fabric with ornaments on it. Above the hair, the head was covered with a white scarf (ubrus), the ends of which, decorated with pearls, were tied under the chin. When leaving the house, married women put on a “kiku” that surrounded their heads in the form of a wide ribbon, the ends of which were connected at the back of the head; the top was covered with colored fabric; the front part of the headdress was richly decorated with pearls and precious stones; The headdress could be detached or attached to another headdress, as needed. In front of the kike were suspended pearl threads (lower), which fell to the shoulders, four or six on each side. Leaving the house, women wore a hat with brim and with falling red cords over the top of the trim, or a black velvet hat with a fur trim. The kokoshnik served as a headdress for both women and girls. It looked like a fan or fan attached to a hairline. The headdress of the kokoshnik was embroidered with gold, pearls or multi-colored silk and beads. Women and girls of all strata of the population adorned themselves with earrings, which were varied: copper, silver, gold, with yahonts, emeralds, "sparks" (small stones). Solid gemstone earrings were rare. Bracelets with pearls and stones served as decoration for the hands, and on the fingers there were rings and rings, gold and silver, with small pearls.
Paneva Paneva (ponyova, ponyava, ponya, ponyka) women's woolen skirt worn by peasant women. It is a belt garment made of three or more partially stitched pieces of wool fabric, specially made on a weaving mill. Paneva is an ancient type of women's clothing, it was worn in combination with a kitsch and special chest and shoulder clothing. These are the clothes of predominantly married women, the girls wore them upon reaching puberty, and sometimes during the wedding ceremony. Panevs vary in cut and color. In terms of cut, swing panevs are distinguished, open in front or on the side, and with a stitch, deaf. Both types are inherent in the regions of southern Russia. In the Smolensk province, among the swinging panels, there are flares, in which one panel is located in front and two at the back, so that both sides are open, and a different shelf, consisting of three panels of different lengths, of which the short one is located on the right, and a third of the first and third panels were worn with tucked away and thrown over the belt.
Sundress Sundress is a folk Russian women's clothing. Dress, most often sleeveless. Sundresses varied in fabrics and cut. Sundresses were worn in Central and Eastern Europe. The forms and styles of making sundresses changed from century to century, from north to south, from a peasant woman to a noblewoman. In the XIVth, the sarafan could be worn by the governors and the great Moscow princes. It became the final accessory of the female wardrobe only in the 17th century. In Russian villages, by a sundress, one could learn about the social status of a woman and about her mood. Russian sundresses consisted of many elements, so they were very heavy, especially festive ones. Kosoklinny sarafans sewn from "hair" sheep wool, woven in black with a decoction of alder and oak. There were different festive and "weekday" sundresses. Festive for every day were decorated on the hem with "chitan" ("gaitan", "gaitan") with a thin 1 cm braid of homemade red wool. The top was decorated with a strip of velvet. However, not only woolen sundresses were worn every day. As a lightweight, home clothing "sayan" straight sundress made of satin, gathered in a small fold on the back and sides. The young wore "red" or "burgundy" saianas, while the older ones wore blue and black. In the Smolensk region, an oblique sundress (except for the general modern name "sundress"), depending on its type, place of existence, cut, material, is called differently: feryaz ("queen"), sukman, sukmanka, sinikin, klinastic, nasovka, half-wallet, chinese (Titayka).
Shirt In Russia, it was customary to trim shirts with embroidery at the most “vulnerable” places for evil forces at the collar, along the edges of the sleeves, on the shoulders, and especially along the hem. Embroidery served as a talisman; it was dominated by solar symbols, as well as images of birds, especially roosters, which were traditionally considered guardians who drive away evil spirits. In the XVII and XVIII centuries a border was sewn to the shirts along the hem. In rich shirts, gold braid or gold braid was sewn at the seams. A shirt without a border was called a cover. In the folk costume, the shirt was the outer garment, and in the costume of the nobility, the lower one. At home, boyars wore a maid's shirt, it was always silk. The colors of the shirts are different: more often white, blue and red (red shirts were worn along with white ports). They were worn outside and girded with a narrow belt. A lining was sewn onto the back and chest of the shirt, which was called the background.
Women's hats In the general set of women's peasant costume, a headdress was an important item. In the Smolensk region, in combination with the oblique sundress at the end of the 19th century, the old, traditional forms of headwear continued to be used: collections, warriors, kokoshniks, duckweeds, kitsch, magpies, flys, scarves "khrantsovskie", "puntovka" silk, shawls ... Blanks, separate parts for headdresses came mainly from the neighboring Tver province: from Torzhok - velvet and brocade, embroidered with gold, silver and silk threads, foreheads, backsides; from Rzhev - pearl and beaded duckweed ... These headdresses were expensive and not everyone had them.
Hats for men Hats played an important role in the costume. In the old days, men's hats were made with a velvet top of a bright conical or round shape, but always with a fur band. An edge of expensive fur or even headphones were a hallmark of princely hats. Over time, the hat became a symbol of a certain social stratum. That is why they did not take off their caps indoors, at a party, at receptions and even in front of the sovereign. The higher the hat was sewn, the more noble was the boyar who wore it. This meaning of the word "hat" is still preserved in the proverb "According to Senka and a hat". High hats meant the nobility of the family and dignity. Coming home, they did not throw an expensive hat, but put it on special device, painted and is a decoration in the house. It was called a boob. In the XVXVII centuries. hats of the Russian nobility were of four types. Rich people, following oriental customs, at home put on a small velvet cap, embroidered with gold embroidery, beads and pearls, such as a round or four-sided skullcap, on their shaved heads. It was called tafia or skufia. They wore such hats at home and did not even take them off in church. A special decree of the Church Council in 1551 prohibited even rich people from entering the church wearing tafia. Another form of the cap was the already known and previously pointed cap. The rich wore caps made of satin, usually white, with a buttoned band, studded with pearls and gold buttons, and precious stones.
Onuchi Onucha is a long, wide (about 30 cm) strip of white, black or brown fabric (canvas, woolen) for wrapping the leg up to the knee (when wearing sandals). The entire foot and lower leg were wrapped in such strips of tissue. Onuchi, if they were worn with short shoes or without them at all, were tied to the leg with leather twists or rope or bast braids, knitted or braided. The first was used on weekdays, the second (usually white or red) on holidays. The obraz were tied around the leg in a criss-cross or in turns. Usually in the summer they wore canvas (linen or hemp fabric) onuchi, in winter woolen (woolen fabric of plain weaving) and canvas together.
Lapti Lapti low footwear, common in Russia in the old days, but nevertheless widely used in rural areas until the 1930s, woven from bark (linden, elm and others) or birch bark. The bast was tied to the leg with laces twisted from the same bast from which the bast shoes were made. Bast shoes were worn with footcloths (onuchi). From the bast shoes up and around the lower leg, in the manner of an ancient Greek sandal, there was a bast cord, which was attached below the bast shoe and kept the footcloth from unwinding. Nevertheless, when walking for a long time, periodically it was necessary to change shoes and rewind loose footcloths. Weaving bast shoes was a winter occupation of peasants in Russia, when there was no field work. The bast was harvested at a certain summer season, when the bast had the necessary strength characteristics. New, freshly woven sandals were made one by one and in a pair did not differ from the left to the right. A pair of bast shoes was enough for a man for a week no more. Hence the saying: "Weave five sandals on the road!"
Boots The footwear of people with prosperity consisted of boots, chobots, shoes and ichtygs. They were made of soft morocco goat leather. Boots were also made of thick leather yuft and calfskin calfskin. Like fabrics, leathers were dyed in different colors. Velvet and brocade served as the material for the princely shoes. Chobots sharp-toed and curved up ankle boots with heels. Boots were worn up to the knees, and they served as protection for the legs, therefore, they were lined with soft canvas. In the old days, boots were without a heel and had a soft sole in several layers of leather, a pointed toe. Later, a heel appeared and they added the saying: "Fly a nightingale from under the sock, and roll an egg around the heel." The heels were attached with iron or silver staples, and the soles with nails. The front of the boot was usually higher than the back, the seams were located on the sides. Shoes were cut on one leg, since the shoes with the help of which the shoes were sewn did not distinguish between the right and left boots. So they said: "Two pair of boots, and both on the left foot." Therefore, new boots were worn out for a long time. Boots were made in black, green, and yellow, but most often red. The edges of the tops of rich boots were trimmed with braid, strips of bright fabric, not to mention embroidery: even pearls could be seen on the boots of the most noble ones. The boots were quite expensive. One pair of boots in the 15th century. it was possible to change 7 pounds of rye flour or 16 kg butter... Therefore, most often rich people made shoes at home, for which they kept experienced shoemaker slaves.
NECK DECORATIONS In the mounds of the Smolensk region, quite frequent finds are necklaces made of beads and sometimes metal pendants; the most common beads are glass, gilded or silver-plated, barrel-shaped or cylindrical; pendants were moonfish, round lamellar or openwork pendants, bells, occasionally, drilled fangs of animals; Of greatest interest are pendants in the form of a plate ridge, the body of which is usually decorated with a circular pattern, since over 80% of such ornaments have been found on the territory of the Krivichi.
After the adoption of Christianity, Byzantine customs, as well as Byzantine clothing, spread in Russia.
The ancient Russian costume of this period becomes long and free, he did not emphasize the figure and gave it a static look.
Russia traded with Eastern and Western European countries, and the nobility dressed mainly in imported fabrics, which were called "pavolok". This is velvet (with an embossed pattern or embroidered with gold), and brocade (aksamit), and taffeta (silk patterned fabric with a pattern). The cut of the clothes was simple, and it differed mainly in the quality of the fabrics.
Women's and men's outfits were richly decorated with embroidery, pearls, and furs. The costumes of the nobility used expensive sable, otter, marten, and beaver fur, and peasant clothes were sewn from sheepskin, hare, and squirrel fur.
Men's suit
The ancient Rusich wore a shirt and trousers ("ports").
The shirt is straight, with long narrow sleeves, without a collar, in the front with a small slit that was tied with a cord or fastened with a button. Sometimes on the sleeves around the wrist they put on elegant, expensive fabrics with embroidered "sleeves" - the prototype of future cuffs.
Shirts were sewn from fabrics of different colors - white, red, blue-blue (azure), decorated with embroidery or fabric of a different color. They were worn outside and belted. Commoners had linen shirts that replaced both underwear and overcoats. Noble people wore another over the lower shirt - the upper one, which expanded downward, thanks to the wedges sewn into the sides.
Ports - long, narrow, tapering down trousers, which were tied at the waist with a drawstring. The peasants wore canvas ports, and the nobility wore cloth or silk.
The "retinue" served as outerwear. It was also straight, no lower than the knees, with long narrow sleeves, widened downwards due to wedges. The suite was girded with a wide belt, to which was hung a purse in the form of a pouch - "kalita". For winter, the retinue was made with fur.
The nobility also wore small rectangular or rounded “basket” cloaks, which were of Byzantine-Roman origin. They were thrown over the left shoulder and fastened with a buckle on the right. Or they covered both shoulders and fastened in the front.
Woman suit
In Ancient Russia, women with a stately figure, a white face, a bright blush, and sable eyebrows were considered beautiful.
Russian women adopted the oriental custom of face painting. They covered the face with a thick layer of blush and whitewash, and also blackened the eyebrows and eyelashes.
Women, like men, wore a shirt, but longer, almost to the feet. Ornaments were embroidered on the shirt, it could be gathered at the neck and trimmed with a border. They wore it with a belt. Wealthy women had two shirts: the bottom and the top, made of more expensive fabric.
A skirt made of variegated fabric - "poneva" was worn over the shirt: sewn panels were wrapped around the hips and tied at the waist with a cord.
The girls wore a "zaponu" over their shirts - a rectangular piece of fabric folded in half with a hole for the head. The zapona was shorter than the shirt, it was not sewn on the sides and was always belted.
Festive elegant clothes, worn over a ponev or a cuff, were a "top" - an embroidered tunic made of expensive fabric with short wide sleeves.
The grand dukes and princesses wore long and narrow tunics with long sleeves, mainly of blue color; purple cloaks woven with gold, which were fastened on the right shoulder or chest with a beautiful buckle. The ceremonial dress of the grand dukes was a crown of gold and silver, decorated with pearls, gems and enamels, and “barma” - a wide round collar, also richly decorated with precious stones and icon medallions. The royal crown always belonged to the eldest in the grand-ducal or royal family. The princesses wore a veil under the crown, the folds of which, framing the face, fell over the shoulders.
The so-called "Monomakh hat", trimmed with sable fur, with diamonds, emeralds, yahonts, and a cross at the top, appeared much later. There was a legend about its Byzantine origin, according to which this headdress belonged to Vladimir Monomakh's maternal grandfather, Konstantin Monomakh, and the Byzantine emperor Alexei Komnenos sent it to Vladimir. However, it was established that Monomakh's hat was made in 1624 for Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich.
prince costume: patterned fur coat, shirt decorated with a border princess costume: outerwear with double sleeves, Byzantine collar costumes of the prince and princess of Ancient Russia
Warrior costume
Old Russian warriors wore short, knee-length, chain mail with short sleeves over ordinary clothes. It was worn over the head and tied with a sash made of metal plaques. Chain mail was expensive, so ordinary warriors wore "kuyak" - a sleeveless leather shirt with metal plates sewn on it. The head was protected by a pointed helmet, to which a chain mail mesh ("aventail") was attached from the inside, covering the back and shoulders. Russian soldiers fought with straight and curved swords, sabers, spears, bows and arrows, flails and axes.
Shoes
In Ancient Russia, boots or bast shoes with onuchi were worn. Onuchi were long pieces of fabric that were wrapped over ports. The bast shoes were tied to the leg with strings. Wealthy people wore very thick stockings over ports. The noble wore high boots without heels made of colored leather.
Women also wore bast shoes with onuchi or colored leather boots without heels, which were decorated with embroidery.
Hairstyles and hats
Men cut their hair in an even semicircle - "in brackets" or "in a circle". They wore a wide beard.
The hat was an obligatory element of a man's suit. They were made of felt or cloth and had the shape of a high or low cap. Round hats were covered with fur.
Married women walked only with their heads covered - this was a strict tradition. The worst offense for a woman was to rip off her headdress. His women did not film even with close relatives. Hair was covered with a special cap - "warrior", and over it a white or red linen shawl - "ubrus" was put on. Noble women had silk trim. It was fixed under the chin, leaving the ends free, decorated with rich embroidery. Round hats made of expensive fabric with fur trim were worn over the garment.
Girls wore their hair loose, tying it up with a ribbon or braid, or braiding it in braids. Most often there was only one braid - on the back of the head. The girls' headdress was a crown, often toothed. It was made of leather or birch bark and covered with gold cloth.
Historians did not come to a consensus about what the Russian clothes of the Proto-Slavic era looked like, since at that time the tribes lived mainly away from trade routes, often in forest areas and isolation. However, there are suggestions that the outfits in those days were simple and rather monotonous. The latter is due to the fact that home-based fabric production was quite laborious at that time, since there were practically no technical means for the manufacture of wardrobe items.
Little information has survived about ancient clothing
State formation Ancient Russia, the clothing of the population of which became more and more diverse as it came into contact with other peoples, began to take shape by the ninth century AD. Prior to this period, data on the appearance of the Slavs were minimal, since wardrobe items at that time were made from natural materials, the organic remains of which do not last for a long time. In addition, it should be borne in mind that in the 6-9 century AD, the Proto-Slavs had a custom to burn bodies before burial, therefore, in the burial grounds, they mainly find the remains of melted jewelry or metal elements of clothing. Archaeologists were lucky only a few times when, for example, during excavations on Old Ladoga found the remnants of the skin, which allowed to restore appearance mittens and the like of stocking boots worn by our distant ancestors.
Into the battle in only pants
In foreign written sources until the 10th century AD, there is no mention of Russian clothing. Neither Byzantine authors nor Arabic sources write about this. Only P. Kesarsky in the sixth century mentioned that the Slavs (from the Balkans) go into battle in only short-cut pants, without a cloak or tunic on top. Later, when the Slavs acquired a new version of writing, scientists, based on written sources, had the opportunity to determine how people looked at that period, at least the most eminent of them.
The kings wore shirts
What did those who ruled Ancient Russia look like? Svyatoslav Yaroslavovich, shown in the image in the Izbornik 1073, is distinguished by a simple cut. This is a long, below the knee, shirt, over which a cloak with a fastener on the shoulder is draped over. The prince has a hat on his head, presumably with a fur trim, on his feet are sharp-toed boots. His family members, standing nearby, also wear shirts tied with belts. Svyatoslav's wife has a shirt almost to the floor, a scarf on her head. on a small child is a miniature copy of an adult. Yaroslav's sons are dressed in similar caftans with collars and, most likely, wore so-called "ports" - rather narrow trousers with a tie at the hips. The wardrobe items in the image are colored reddish brown.
Clothes were made on a loom
Experts suggest that lightweight clothing Kievan Rus for the most part was white, since from prehistoric times the Slavs made wardrobe items from flax and hemp, which gave white fiber (or grayish, with insufficient bleaching). Already in the 6-9 centuries, the tribes of Northern Russia knew that the loom was of a vertical type, and in the south they found objects related to the 9-10 centuries, which testified to possible work on a horizontal loom.
In addition to linen and hemp fabrics, the Slavs also actively used woolen fabrics, the remains of which were found in the East Slavic mounds. In addition, due to climatic conditions, fur clothing was very popular. The tailors of that time already had the ability to stitch together several skins to obtain a thing. big size... The skins of wolves, bears, and rams were most often used for "fur coats", and the decoration (lining) was made of sable, otter, beaver, squirrel, ermine, marten. Of course, only representatives of the nobility wore expensive furs. In Russia, they knew how to process the skins of various animals (tanning with vegetable elements, etc.), so men's clothing in Russia included waist belts, mittens and leather shoes (for some members of the population). The Slavs more often wore leather goods made from cow or goat skins than from horse skins.
Even in cold weather, they probably wore bast shoes
What was Ancient Russia wearing? Clothes from natural materials among most of the population here in the cold season it was supplemented with ... bast shoes and windings on the feet, which are the oldest type of footwear (in the summer, most likely, they walked barefoot). Special hooks for archaeologists have been found at the Neolithic sites, so it is highly likely that these models were worn by both the Slavs and the Proto-Slavs. The bast shoes were supposedly made from the bark of various tree species and were very wear-resistant. In a later period, it was found that in winter a man used to wear bast shoes in ten days, and in summer harvest - in less than a week. Nevertheless, even the Red Army marched in such shoes in the 30s of the 20th century, and a special commission - "Chekvolap" was engaged in the preparation of bast shoes for military purposes.
To the temple - only in Slavic clothes!
The Slavs who inhabited Ancient Russia (whose clothes and shoes did not differ in a large assortment), nevertheless, respected their simple wardrobe. For example, in the "Word of Danila the Zatochnik" it is stated that "it would be better if we saw our leg in lychenitsa (bast shoes) in your house than in a scarlet boot in the boyar's yard." And the leader of the Czech Slavs Samo is known for not letting the ambassador of the German king Dagobert to his reception until he changed into Slavic clothes. The same fate befell the representative of the bishop, the German Gerimann, who, before visiting the Triglav temple in the town of Shchetino, had to change into a Slavic cloak and hat (1124 A.D.).
Women have always loved jewelry
Archaeologists find it difficult to say how women's clothing looked in Russia at the very beginning of the emergence of Russian statehood. It is assumed that in style it did not differ much from the men's shirt, only it was, perhaps, more richly decorated with embroidery and longer. On their heads, women wore prototypes of kokoshniks, on their necks, often blue or green glass beads. Bracelets and rings were less common. In winter, ladies wore fur coats, as well as capes with ties, like aprons - "understand", which protected the lower part of the body from behind and from the sides. Their presence was recorded already in the 11th century AD.
Influence of other states
As contacts between other countries and the state of Ancient Rus developed, the clothes of the Slavs became more diverse due to new fabrics, borrowing styles and dividing society into different layers. For example, in pre-Mongol Russia (10-13 centuries), the appearance of the Russian nobility was more in line with Byzantine traditions with their long flowing shirts, cloaks with fasteners. And among the common people, in particular among women, such tendencies were emphasized by a "cuff" - a simple piece of fabric folded in half, with a hole for the head, which was worn over the main shirt and belted (there were no side seams on the cuff). On holidays, the ladies wore “tops” made of embroidered fabrics, which were worn over cuffs or shirts and were tunics without a belt with wide sleeves. Almost all clothes of the times of Kievan Rus were worn over the head and did not have their own collar (there were invoices).
Mongolian Warrior Clothes
The Tatar-Mongol invasion left certain borrowings in the sphere of material culture, which influenced what clothes were like in Russia in subsequent centuries. Many wardrobe items of Mongolian warriors later appeared in Russian men, including boots with a felt coat made of two layers of fur (outer and inner), wide trousers, armies, skullcaps (tafyas), sash belts, etc.
How did the clothes of Muscovite Rus differ from the clothes of Kievan Rus?
The clothes of the 15th century, when the Tatar-Mongol yoke was overthrown and Russia became a Moscow principality, changed in accordance with the era, but mainly for the boyars, nobles and townspeople. During this period, the costume retained the main features of the costume of Kievan Rus - a shirt and ports for men, an uncut cut of wardrobe items, a considerable length, but signs of a new fashion appeared. These include, in particular, the presence of swinging clothes in wardrobes. For women, it was unbuttoned to the bottom, for men - to the waist and was initially supplied with a “butt” fastener by means of hinged loops. In the future, the right floor came over the top to the left, which was explained by the convenience of such fasteners for men in saber fights.
Fake sleeves and gold embroidery
Around this period, non-functional elements appear in the clothing of the nobility. These include framed multilayer collars and fold-over sleeves, which, for example, in the ohabna, were tied at the back, emphasizing that the wearer of the garment does not engage in hard work. Rich people could wear multiple layers of clothing, even during the hottest season. At the same time, wardrobe items were often fully fastened with clasps. The latter led to the fact that there were many elements of the jewelry level on the clothes, including decoration with pearls, precious stones, embroidery with gold and silver wire, buttons made of gold, silver, enamel and precious stones.
There were also objects in the Russian wardrobe of that time that could emphasize certain properties of the figure. These include a waist bag-purse ("kalita"), which the warriors wore at the waist with a slender figure, and the boyars - on the hip line with significant slouching of clothes, since fullness in this environment was highly valued as a sign of a well-fed life.
It is not known what the children's clothes of the period of Moscow Rus looked like. Most likely, she was again a simplified copy of adult models. But samples of women's fashion of that time inspired many artists to create picturesque masterpieces (Korovin, Repin, Surikov). At the heart of the entire wardrobe, again, was a shirt, extended downward due to wedges (the width could reach 6 meters below!). It was sewn from cotton or silk fabrics ( simple people- again from flax) and collected at the neck.
Fashionable suit ... weighing 15 kilograms
A sundress made of bright fabric with a vertical embroidered stripe in the middle was worn over the shirt, which was kept on narrow straps and was often tied under the chest. Outerwear for women in Russia in the 16th century was represented by a “soul warmer” made of bright fabrics, which was also held on the shoulders on the straps. In the times of Muscovite Russia, ladies continued to wear ancient elements of clothing - ponevu, an apron, a zapon, etc. Representatives of wealthy families wore an "summer coat", often with a beaver collar-necklace, a padded jacket made of fur. Of the headdresses, the most popular was "kika" - a hoop and kokoshnik covered with fabric, in winter - a cap with trim. The clothes of the boyars were almost always unsuitable, sewn from expensive fabrics with numerous embroideries, and their weight could reach 15 kilograms. In such a dress, the lady was a static, sedate, partly monumental figure, which corresponded to the fashion and norms of behavior of that time.
The clothes of the 17th century in Russia, in general, were similar to the clothes of the previous centuries, but some new structural elements also appeared. These include the coming into fashion of wide sleeves gathered at the wrist of women's shirts, the widespread use of shushuns - sundresses, to which two fake long sleeves were sewn at the back. Historians note that since the 17th century, a fashion has come to decorate the hem of a sundress with a strip and its disappearance from the front panel. During this period, foreign fashion Rus in this period concerned little, only new fabrics and individual elements, such as the Polish caftan, were popular. It should be noted that Russian society actively opposed the introduction of "German" fashion by Peter the Great at the beginning of the 18th century, since the proposed outfits, hairstyles and lifestyle did not correspond to the centuries-old way of life and trends in Russian clothing.
Fashion is a wayward and capricious young lady, whose quirks invariably make the older generation dramatically roll their eyes, and young girls spend hours rethinking their wardrobe in accordance with new trends.
As soon as humanity has developed enough to be able to use clothing for more than heating and protection, clothing immediately became additional tool self-expression. We all know how to distinguish a portrait of a duchess from a portrait of a commoner - by how luxurious her dress is!
About fashion in Ancient Russia, content:
Clothing is not only a way of expressing yourself, but also another language in which you speak with the world around you, another system of signs that gives the people around you an idea of who is in front of them.
Different systems of signs characteristic of different cultures can be abstract and symbolic to varying degrees - for example, if in European culture, seeing a lady with a black veil or a bandage in her hair, we assume that she is in mourning, then in the East the color of death will be be considered white. Such small differences make an individual culture, and only knowing them, you can truly enjoy the beauty of the national costume of any country or the peculiarities of the clothing of a particular culture.
The Slavic countries, of course, also have their own National costumes... We saw all of them from childhood on various patriotic posters, in illustrations for fairy tales, or even wore them ourselves at matinees. Unfortunately, these vaguely familiar pictures are not enough to get a detailed idea of what our ancestors looked like, what ancient Russian beauties wore, what styles of dresses they delighted with, and what colors they would never wear.
Fortunately, today there is an excellent opportunity both to look at reproductions from textbooks, and to touch or even try on such an outfit live or sew it yourself. For these and many other purposes, there are various museums and centers of interactive history - places where, through the efforts of enthusiasts, history seems to us no longer abstract stories from textbooks, but, so to speak, in full HD format.
Women's fashion of Ancient Russia
The merciless time has preserved for curious archaeologists not so many memorials that make it possible to reliably describe the costumes of girls of that era, therefore all archaeological finds, such as images or remains of fabrics, are extremely valuable.
Judging by the set of information that modern historians have at their disposal, the most common materials used for tailoring were linen (of more or less good quality) and wool. From this, fabric was made, which also differed in quality - cloth or thin linen or sermyaga and coarse canvas.
In Russia, for a very long time, its own large and full-scale production of high-grade fabrics, such as silk, was not established, so it was customary to import it from abroad. Basically, of course, silk was imported to Kievan Rus from Byzantium.
It was customary to decorate clothes, both women and men. For these purposes, they used coloring and embroidery - for ornament. There was also a technology for creating patterns from yarn of different colors - motley. It was usually done in blue-green tones.
As for clothes made of brocade and silk, the materials for such products were called pavoloka and were mainly red and its shades - purple or scarlet, crimson or carmine, as well as blue, azure and turquoise, less often green. Often such an outfit could be seen decorated with patterns and ornaments made of gold and silver threads - they cost, of course, very expensive and were not affordable for everyone.
Individual characteristics female costume those times there were headdresses - hats and scarves. Under the hat they wore a special scarf folded and fixed under the chin - an ubrus. Peasant women wore special caps called warriors.
Women, like men, often wore special caftans over their clothes - with wide sleeves, which made it possible to see the embroidered and beautifully decorated sleeves of the lower shirt. This very shirt was a very important and obligatory element of clothing. Embroidered with patterns, it was always long and covered the ankles. The collar of the lower shirt could be decorated with a border, and the sleeves - with an ornament.
Most of the shoes were not very varied. Those who could afford it wore soft boots without heels with decorations on the bootleg or socks, while the peasants did with bast shoes.
Among the traditional elements of women's clothing, it is also worth highlighting the following: a skirt wrapped over a shirt, which was called "poneva", and spacious clothes, also worn over a shirt, made of canvas - it was called a "zapona".
The motives of the ornaments that adorned clothes and shoes, frills and sleeves, were almost always classic - floral or geometric patterns, that is, the interweaving of lines and corners, flowers and leaves. Colors and materials were also selected depending on status and wealth, personal preferences or local traditions.
Men's clothing of Ancient Russia
The clothing of males in Ancient Russia can be judged mainly by written sources - for example, such as "Izbornik Svyatoslav".
The illustrations there are very colorful and give you a general idea of what it looked like men's suit those times. According to the image of the prince of Kiev, one can understand that the obligatory elements of the men's attire of those times was a caftan - on the prince it is green, with a red stripe. (The red color was considered more "noble", it was worn by boyars or representatives of the princely family).
The prince's costume is also complemented by golden sleeves. Arm sleeves are a piece of clothing that is similar in functionality to cuffs, except that it is much more voluminous.
In this exciting game "Collect the Russian Prince", one should not forget about outerwear as well. In the case of this image of Svyatoslav, this is a dark blue cloak of those that were worn by the nobility in those days. It was called "basket" and was trimmed with a golden border, and also had a red lining. The hat completes the image - an indispensable attribute of every noble person of those times. The prince has it decorated with fur. His boots are green and made of morocco.
Headdresses deserve a separate mention in the conversation about the clothes of the men of Ancient Russia. Their role was played by hats worn by representatives of all classes - and, of course, taken off as a sign of respect or in front of the entrance to the church.
For commoner peasants, caps made of felt, trimmed with a thin strip of fur, were intended. The wealthier merchants could afford to order a cap made of cloth, and the most noble and respected people wore headdresses made of brocade and decorated with gold and silver threads, various colored precious stones and fur stripes.
Cloaks, as in the attached and described above drawing with Svyatoslav, called "basket", were thrown over one shoulder and fixed with a special fastener - a fibula. This characteristic tendency was borrowed by the inhabitants of Kievan Rus from the Byzantines, and those, in turn, from the Romans.
When the whole political and significant part social activities due to certain historical reasons, it moved to Novgorod, then the cloaks were replaced by caftans and fur coats, which are more relevant in this area. Fur coats, which were worn in Novgorod, were distinguished by their sewn-in sleeves, which performed rather a decorative function - rarely when this piece of clothing was worn entirely, more often it was simply thrown over the shoulders.
From raincoats and fur coats to underwear. His role in the wardrobe of a man of Ancient Russia was played by ports and an undershirt. Representatives of the lower class used a rough canvas, decorated with pied and printed heels, which peeped out of the sleeves of their outerwear, as a material for sewing a lower shirt.
Ports were ordinary canvas pants worn under clothes and tied at the waist with a drawstring. They narrowed downwards.
Wealthy people wore shirts made of thin linen with predominantly scarlet taffeta trim. The collars were unfastened and put on separately. Often they were embroidered with stones and pearls, patterns, embroidered with golden threads, with patterns and ornaments. The shirt was worn outside, and on special occasions, luxuriously decorated arm sleeves were also worn.
Since the strips of fabric were usually quite narrow - from thirty centimeters to sixty - they had to be sewn together. In such cases, the seams were not hidden, but decorated and deliberately emphasized.
Separately, it is worth mentioning the clothes of the Slavic heroes-warriors: in addition to all of the above, their vestments also included at least a chain mail shirt with slits on the sides, and, of course, a helmet protecting the head.
Old Russian costume today
Today, for fans and admirers of Slavic history, there is a wide range of opportunities for immersion in the historical period that they have loved since school. To do this, you don't have to wait for a mad scientist to burst into your apartment, who urgently needs a partner for time travel.
All you need is a little strength, patience, perseverance and curiosity. All these qualities will help you study a couple of sources in order to determine exactly what cut of the dress will be appropriate for the century and the character you are playing.
Most of the materials for starting a suit are likely to be found at your local fabric store - you will most likely need linen. In metropolitan areas or in those cities where in warm time Various reenactment festivals take place throughout the year, you can often find a seamstress who knows exactly what you need and how to achieve it - you can either take a few lessons or just order a dress.
Just be prepared for the fact that it will be too late to apply before the start of the festival - most likely, a real blockage will happen to the craftswoman. Think about this in advance.
Be careful - no one is immune from situations when it suddenly turns out that in the world of historical science there are several diametrically opposite points of view at once regarding whether a particular piece of clothing was in use in Ancient Russia, on what occasions it was worn, and in general - pants or skirt?
People who are engaged in reproducing events of the distant past are called historical reenactors. These are not the ones that work in museums and restore the original appearance of some sculpture - they are those that, relying on the information they have about a certain historical period, recreate clothes, everyday life, and sometimes buildings of those times - and play it. A true journey into the past, like in the "Butterfly Effect" - only no risks. Except for one thing - the risk of getting too carried away. 
In big cities - and even in some small ones - there are entire clubs and movements that unite reenactors and role-playing.
As a rule, they are engaged in the reconstruction of one specific historical period, maximum two or three - the creation of high-quality material takes a lot of time and takes a lot of effort, and even in one historical period you can study so many things that your whole life will not be enough for this.
The old clothes of the Russian nobility, in their cut, generally resembled those of the lower class, although they differed greatly in the quality of material and decoration. The body was fitted with a wide shirt, which did not reach the knees, made of plain canvas or silk, depending on the wealth of the owner. In an elegant shirt, usually red, the edges and chest were embroidered with gold and silks, a richly decorated collar was fastened at the top with silver or gold buttons (it was called a "necklace").
In simple, cheap shirts, the buttons were copper or were replaced with cufflinks with loops. The shirt was released over the underwear. Short ports or trousers were worn on the legs without a cut, but with a knot that allowed them to be pulled or expanded in the belt at will, and with pockets (zep). Pants were made of taffeta, silk, cloth, as well as coarse woolen fabric or canvas.
Zipun
Over the shirt and trousers, a narrow sleeveless zipun made of silk, taffeta or dye was worn, with a narrow small collar fastened on. Zipun reached to the knees and usually served as home clothes.
The usual and widespread type of outerwear worn on a zipun was a caftan with sleeves reaching up to the toes, which were gathered in folds, so that the ends of the sleeves could replace gloves, and in winter serve as a muff. On the front of the caftan, along the slit, on both sides, stripes with ties were made for fastening. The material for the caftan was velvet, satin, damask, taffeta, mukhoyar (Bukhara paper fabric) or simple dyeing. In elegant caftans, a pearl necklace was sometimes attached behind a standing collar, and a "wrist" decorated with gold embroidery and pearls was fastened to the edges of the sleeves; the floors were trimmed with lace embroidered with silver or gold. "Tours" caftans without a collar, which had fasteners only on the left side and at the neck, differed in their cut from the "back" caftans with an interception in the middle and with fasteners on buttons. Among the caftans were distinguished by their purpose: dining rooms, riding, rain, "meek" (funeral). Winter caftans made with fur were called "shrouds".
A zipun was sometimes worn "feryaz" (ferrez), which was an outer garment without a collar, reaching to the ankles, with long sleeves tapering to the wrist; it was fastened in front with buttons or ties. Winter quilts were made with fur, and summer ones with a simple lining. In winter, sometimes sleeveless quilts were worn under the caftan. Fancy fries were made of velvet, satin, taffeta, damask, cloth and were decorated with silver lace.
Ohaben
The cover-up clothes that were worn when leaving the house included one-row, ohaben, opashen, yapancha, fur coat, etc.
Of one order
Opashen
One row - wide, long-brimmed clothes without collars, with long sleeves, with stripes and buttons or strings - were usually made of cloth and other woolen fabrics; in autumn and in bad weather it was worn both in sleeves and stitching. The ohab looked like a one-row, but it had a turn-down collar that went down the back, and the long sleeves fell back and under them there were holes for the arms, as in the one-row. A simple ohaben was sewn of cloth, mukhoyar, and an elegant one was made of velvet, obiari, damask, brocade, decorated with stripes and fastened with buttons. The waist in its cut was somewhat longer at the back than at the front, and the sleeves narrowed towards the wrist. Opashny was sewn of velvet, satin, obiari, kamka, decorated with lace, stripes, fastened with buttons and loops with tassels. Opashen was worn without a belt ("on the right hand") and saddle-stitched. The sleeveless yapancha (epancha) was a cloak worn in bad weather. Traveling yapancha made of rough cloth or camel's hair was different from the elegant yapancha made of good fabric lined with fur.
Feryaz
The most elegant clothing was a fur coat. She was not only worn when going out into the cold, but the custom allowed the owners to sit in fur coats even when receiving guests. Simple fur coats were made of sheepskin or with hare fur, the quality was higher for martens and squirrels; noble and wealthy people had fur coats with sable, fox, beaver or ermine fur. Fur coats were covered with cloth, taffeta, satin, velvet, obiar or simple dye, decorated with pearls, stripes and fastened with buttons with loops or long laces with tassels at the end. "Russian" fur coats had a turn-down fur collar. "Polish" fur coats were sewn with a narrow collar, with fur cuffs and were fastened at the neck only with a cuff (double metal button).
Terlik
For sewing men's clothing foreign imported materials were often used, and bright colors were preferred, especially "worm" (crimson). The most elegant was considered to be colored clothing, which was worn on special occasions. Clothes embroidered with gold could only be worn by boyars and Duma people. Patches were always made of a material of a different color than the clothes themselves, and for rich people they were decorated with pearls and precious stones. Simple clothes were usually fastened with pewter or silk buttons. It was considered indecent to walk without a belt; among the nobility, the belts were richly decorated and sometimes reached several arshins in length.
Boots and shoe
As for footwear, the cheapest were bast shoes made of birch bark or bast and shoes woven from wicker rods; to wrap the legs, they used onuchi made of a piece of canvas or other fabric. In a well-to-do environment, shoes, chobots and ichtygi (ichegi) made of yuft or morocco, most often red and yellow, were used as footwear.
Chobots looked like a deep shoe with a high heel and a pointed toe curved upwards. Elegant shoes and chobots were made of satin and velvet of different colors, decorated with embroidery from silk and gold and silver threads, and were trimmed with pearls. Elegant boots were the shoes of the nobility, made of colored leather and morocco, and later from velvet and satin; the soles were lined with silver nails, and the high heels with silver horseshoes. Ichetygi were soft morocco boots.
With smart shoes, woolen or silk stockings were worn on the feet.
Kaftan with a collar-trump card
Russian hats were varied, and their shape had its own meaning in everyday life. The crown of the head was covered with taffia, a small cap made of morocco, satin, velvet or brocade, sometimes richly decorated. A common headdress was a cap with a longitudinal slit in the front and back. Less well-to-do people wore cloth and felt caps; in the winter they were lined with cheap fur. Elegant caps were usually made of white satin. Boyars, noblemen and clerks on ordinary days wore low hats of a quadrangular shape with a "roundabout" around a cap made of fur of a black-brown fox, sable or beaver; in winter such hats were lined with fur. Only princes and boyars had the right to wear high "throated" hats made of expensive furs (taken from the throat of a fur-bearing animal) with a cloth top; in their shape, they slightly expanded upward. On solemn occasions, the boyars wore a taffy, a cap, and a throated hat. It was customary to keep a handkerchief in a hat, which, when visiting, was held in hands.
In the winter cold, hands were warmed with fur mittens, which were covered with plain leather, morocco, cloth, satin, velvet. "Cold" mittens were knitted from wool or silk. The wrists of the elegant mittens were embroidered with silk, gold, trimmed with pearls and precious stones.
As an adornment, noble and wealthy people wore an earring in their ear, and on their neck - a silver or gold chain with a cross, on their fingers - rings with diamonds, yagons, emeralds; some rings had personal seals.
Women's coats
Only nobles and military men were allowed to carry weapons with them; The townspeople and peasants were forbidden to do this. According to custom, all men, regardless of their social status, left the house with a staff in their hands.
Some women's clothing was similar to men's. Women wore a long shirt in white or red, with long sleeves embroidered and decorated with wrists. Over the shirt they wore a summer dress - light clothing that reached to the heels with long and very wide sleeves ("caps"), which were decorated with embroidery and pearls. Letniki were sewn from damask, satin, obiari, taffeta of different colors, but wormy ones were especially appreciated; an incision was made in front, which was fastened to the very neck.
A necklace in the form of a braid, usually black, embroidered with gold and pearls, was fastened to the summer man's collar.
The top female garment was a long cloth of cloth, which had from top to bottom a long row of buttons - pewter, silver or gold. Under the long sleeves of the farm, slots for the arms were made under the armpits, a wide round fur collar was fastened around the neck, covering the chest and shoulders. The hem and armholes of the opash were decorated with an embroidered braid. A long sundress with sleeves or without sleeves, with armholes was widespread; the front slit was fastened from top to bottom with buttons. A quilted jacket was worn on a sundress, with the sleeves tapering to the wrist; These clothes were made of satin, taffeta, obiari, altabas (gold or silver fabric), biberek (twisted silk). Warm padded jackets were lined with marten or sable fur.
Fur coat
For women's fur coats, various furs were used: marten, sable, fox, ermine and cheaper ones - squirrel, hare. Fur coats were covered with cloth or silk fabrics of different colors. In the 16th century, it was customary to sew white women's fur coats, but in the 17th century they began to be covered with colored fabrics. The slit made in the front, with stripes on the sides, was fastened with buttons and bordered with an embroidered pattern. The collar (necklace) lying around the neck was made of a different fur than a fur coat; for example, with a marten fur coat - from a black-brown fox. The embellishments on the sleeves could be removed and kept in the family as a hereditary value.
On solemn occasions, noble women put on dragging on their clothes, that is, a worm-colored sleeveless cape made of gold, silvery or silk fabric, richly decorated with pearls and precious stones.
On their heads, married women wore "hairs" in the form of a small cap, which rich women made of gold or silk fabric with ornaments on it. To take off the hair and "goof" a woman, according to the concepts of the 16th-17th centuries, meant to inflict great dishonor on a woman. Above the hair, the head was covered with a white scarf (ubrus), the ends of which, decorated with pearls, were tied under the chin. When leaving the house, married women put on a “kiku” that surrounded their heads in the form of a wide ribbon, the ends of which were connected at the back of the head; the top was covered with colored fabric; the front part - the headdress - was richly decorated with pearls and precious stones; The headdress could be detached or attached to another headdress, as needed. In front of the kike were suspended pearl threads (lower), which fell to the shoulders, four or six on each side. Leaving the house, women wore a hat with brim and with falling red cords over the top of the trim, or a black velvet hat with a fur trim.
The kokoshnik served as a headdress for both women and girls. It looked like a fan or fan attached to a hairline. The headdress of the kokoshnik was embroidered with gold, pearls or multi-colored silk and beads.
Hats
The girls wore crowns on their heads, to which were attached pearl or beaded pendants (cassocks) with precious stones. The girl's crown always left her hair open, which was a symbol of girlhood. For winter, girls from wealthy families were sewn high sable or beaver hats ("columnar") with a silk top, from under which loose hair or a braid with red ribbons woven into it descended down the back. Girls from poor families wore bandages that narrowed at the back and fell on the back with long ends.
Women and girls of all strata of the population adorned themselves with earrings, which were varied: copper, silver, gold, with yahonts, emeralds, "sparks" (small stones). Solid gemstone earrings were rare. Bracelets with pearls and stones served as decoration for the hands, and rings and rings, gold and silver, with small pearls on the fingers.
A rich neck adornment of women and girls was a monisto, consisting of precious stones, gold and silver plaques, pearls, garnets; In the “old days, a number of small crosses were suspended from the monist.
Moscow women loved jewelry and were famous for their pleasant appearance, but in order to be considered beautiful, in the opinion of Moscow people of the 16th-17th centuries, one had to be stout, curvy woman, rouged and painted. The slenderness of a thin body, the grace of a young girl in the eyes of the then beauty lovers had little value.
According to Olearius' description, Russian women had medium height, slender build, were gentle in face; city dwellers all blushed, eyebrows and eyelashes tinted with black or brown paint. This custom was so ingrained that when the wife of the Moscow nobleman prince, Ivan Borisovich Cherkasov, who was beautiful in herself, did not want to blush, the wives of other boyars convinced her not to neglect the custom of her native land, not to dishonor other women, and achieved that this naturally beautiful woman had to give in and apply blush.
Although, in comparison with rich noble people, the clothes of the "black" townspeople and peasants were simpler and less elegant, nevertheless, in this environment there were rich outfits that accumulated from generation to generation. Clothes were usually made at home. And the very cut of the old clothes - without a waist, in the form of a robe - made them suitable for many.
Men's peasant clothing
The most common peasant costume was the Russian KAFTAN. The difference between the Western European caftan and the Russian one was already mentioned at the beginning of this chapter. It remains to add that the peasant caftan was distinguished by a great variety. Common to him was a double-breasted cut, long hem and sleeves, a closed chest. A short caftan was called a SEMI-CAFTAN or SEMI-CAFTAN. The Ukrainian semi-caftan was called the SCROLL, this word can often be found in Gogol. The caftans were most often gray or blue and were sewn from cheap material NANKI - rough cotton fabric or CANVAS - handicraft linen fabric. As a rule, the caftan was girded with a KUSHAK - a long piece of fabric, usually of a different color, the caftan was fastened with hooks on the left side.
A whole wardrobe of Russian caftans passes before us in classical literature. We see them on peasants, shop assistants, bourgeoisie, merchants, coachmen, janitors, and occasionally even on provincial landowners ("Notes of a Hunter" by Turgenev).
What was the first caftan that we met soon after we learned to read - the famous "Trishkin Caftan" by Krylov? Trishka was clearly a poor, indigent person, otherwise he would hardly have needed to redraw his worn-out caftan himself. That is, it comes about a simple Russian caftan? Not at all - Trishka's caftan had coattails, which the peasant caftan never had. Consequently, Trishka reshapes the "German caftan" presented to him by the master. And it is no coincidence in this regard that Krylov compares the length of the caftan, altered by Trishka, with the length of the camisole - also typically noble clothing.
It is curious that for poorly educated women, any clothes worn by men in the sleeves were seen as a caftan. They did not know any other words. Gogol's matchmaker calls Podkolesin's coat coat ("Marriage"), Korobochka calls Chichikov's coat ("Dead Souls").
SUPPORT was a kind of caftan. Best performance it was given by the brilliant connoisseur of Russian life, playwright A.N. Ostrovsky in a letter to artist Burdin: “If you call a jersey a caftan with gathers at the back, which fastens on one side with hooks, then this is how Vosmibratov and Peter should be dressed.” We are talking about the costumes of the characters of the comedy "Forest" - the merchant and his son.
The underwear was considered a more fine-looking garment than a simple caftan. Well-to-do coachmen wore dapper sleeveless jerseys over fur coats. The jersey was also worn by rich merchants, and, for the sake of "simplification," some noblemen, for example, Konstantin Levin in his village ("Anna Karenina"). It is curious that, obeying the fashion, like a certain Russian national costume, little Seryozha was sewn in the same novel a “prefabricated jersey”.
A SIBERIAN was a short caftan, usually blue, sewn at the waist, without a slit in the back and with a low stand-up collar. Sibirki were worn by shopkeepers and merchants, and, as Dostoevsky testifies in Notes from the House of the Dead, some prisoners also wore them.
AZYAM is a kind of caftan. It was sewn from thin fabric and was worn only in summer.
The outer clothing of the peasants (not only men, but also women) was the ARMYAK - also a kind of caftan, sewn from factory fabric - thick cloth or coarse wool. Wealthy Armenians were made of camel hair. It was a wide, long-brimmed, loose-fitting robe, reminiscent of a robe. A dark army jacket wore Turgenev's "Kasian with a Beautiful Sword". We often see Armenians on Nekrasov's men. Nekrasov's poem "Vlas" begins like this: "In an army jacket with an open collar, / With a bare head, / Slowly walks through the city / Uncle Vlas is a gray-haired old man." And here is what Nekrasov peasants look like, waiting "at the front entrance": "Tanned faces and hands, / Armyachishko thin on the shoulders, / On a knapsack on bent backs, / Cross on the neck and blood on the legs ...." Turgenevsky Gerasim, fulfilling the will of his mistress, “covered Mumu with his heavy armor”.
The Armenians were often worn by coachmen, putting them on in winter over sheepskin coats. The hero of L. Tolstoy's story "Polikushka" goes to the city for money "in an army jacket and a fur coat".
Much more primitive than the Armenian was ZIPUN, which was sewn from rough, usually homespun cloth, without a collar, with slanted floors. If we saw a zipun today, we would say: "Some kind of hoodie." “No stake, no yard, / Zipun is the whole livelihood,” we read in Koltsov's poem about the poor man.
Zipun was a kind of peasant coat that protected from cold and bad weather. Women also wore it. Zipun was perceived as a symbol of poverty. No wonder the drunken tailor Merkulov in Chekhov's story "The Captain's Uniform", boasting of former high-ranking customers, exclaims: "Let me die better than sew zipuns!" "
In the last issue of his "Diary of a Writer" Dostoevsky urged: "Let us hear the gray zipuns, what they will say", meaning the poor, working people.
CHUIKA was also a kind of caftan - a long cloth caftan of a dressing gown. Most often, the chuyka could be seen on merchants and bourgeois - innkeepers, artisans, traders. Gorky has a phrase: "Some red-haired man came, dressed as a tradesman, in a chuyka and high boots."
In Russian everyday life and in literature, the word "chuyka" was sometimes used as a synecdoche, that is, the designation of its bearer on the basis of an outward sign - a narrow-minded, ignorant person. In Mayakovsky's poem "Good!" there are lines: "Salop says to chuika, chuika to cloak." Here chuyka and cloak are synonyms for hardened inhabitants.
A homespun caftan made of rough unpainted cloth was called SERMYAGO. In Chekhov's story "Svirel", an old shepherd in a sermyag is depicted. Hence, the epithet is coarse, referring to the backward and poor old Russia- homespun Russia.
Historians of Russian costume note that there were no strictly defined, permanent names for peasant clothing. Much depended on local dialects. Some of the same items of clothing in different dialects were called differently, in other cases different items were called with one word in different places. This is confirmed by Russian classical literature, where the concepts of "caftan", "armyak", "azam", "zipun" and others are often mixed, sometimes even by the same author. However, we considered it our duty to cite the most general, common characteristics of these types of clothing.
From peasant headdresses only recently disappeared KARTUZ, which certainly had a band and a visor, most often of a dark color, in other words, an informal cap. Cap, which appeared in Russia in early XIX centuries, were worn by men of all classes, first landowners, then burghers and peasants. Sometimes the caps were warm, with headphones on. Manilov (“Dead Souls”) appears “in a warm cap with ears”. On Insarov ("On the Eve" of Turgenev) "a strange, eared cap". Nikolai Kirsanov and Yevgeny Bazarov (Fathers and Sons by Turgenev) are wearing caps. "The worn-out cap" is on Eugene, the hero of Pushkin's "The Bronze Horseman". Chichikov travels in a warm cap. Sometimes a uniform cap was also called a cap, even an officer's: Bunin, for example, used “cap” instead of the word “cap”.
The nobles had a special, uniform cap with a red band.
Here it is necessary to warn the reader: the word "cap" in the old days had another meaning. When Khlestakov orders Osip to look in his cap to see if there is any tobacco, it is, of course, not about a headdress, but about a bag for tobacco, a pouch.
Ordinary working people, in particular the coachmen, wore high, rounded hats, nicknamed BUCKWHEATS - by the similarity of shape to the then popular flatbread baked from buckwheat flour. Every peasant's hat was scornfully called SHLYK. In Nekrasov's poem "Who lives well in Russia" there are lines: "Look where the peasant slimes go". At the fair, the peasants left their hats to the innkeepers as a pledge in order to redeem them later.
There have been no significant changes in the names of the shoes. Low shoes, both male and female, in the old days were called SHOES, boots appeared later, not significantly differing from shoes, but debuted in the feminine gender: the heroes of Turgenev, Goncharov, L. Tolstoy had a BOOT on their feet, not a shoe, as we say today. By the way, boots, starting from the 1850s, actively replaced the boots that were almost indispensable for men. Especially thin, expensive leather for boots and other footwear was called ADULT (from the skin of a calf less than a year old) and OPOIKOVA - from the skin of a calf that had not yet switched to vegetable food.
Boots with a SET (or assemblies) - small folds on the tops were considered especially dandy.
Even forty years ago, many men wore SHIELDS on their feet - boots with hooks for winding laces. In this sense, we meet this word in Gorky and Bunin. But already at the beginning of Dostoevsky's novel "The Idiot" we learn about Prince Myshkin: "On his feet were thick-soled shoes with boots - all not in Russian." The modern reader will conclude: not only not in Russian, but also not in human terms at all: two pairs of shoes on one person? However, in the days of Dostoevsky, boots meant the same as gaiters - warm covers worn over shoes. This western novelty evokes Rogozhin's venomous remarks and even a slanderous epigram against Myshkin in the press: “Returning in narrow boots, / I took a million inheritance”.
Women's peasant clothing
From time immemorial, SARAFAN, a long sleeveless dress with pauldrons and a belt, served as rural women's clothing. Before the attack of the Pugachevites on the Belogorsk fortress ("The Captain's Daughter" of Pushkin), her commandant says to his wife: "If you have time, put on a sundress on Masha." A detail that is not noticed by the modern reader, but essential: the commandant expects that in country clothes, if the fortress is taken, the daughter will get lost in the crowd of peasant girls and will not be identified as a noblewoman - the captain's daughter.
Married women wore a PANYOVA or PONEVA - a homespun, usually striped or checkered woolen skirt, in winter - with a quilted jacket. About the merchant Bolshova's clerk Podkhalyuzin in Ostrovsky's comedy "Our people - we will be numbered!" with contempt she says that she is "almost averse to it", hinting at her common origin. In "Resurrection" L. Tolstoy notes that the women in the village church were in panevs. On weekdays they wore POVOYNIK - a scarf entwined around the head, on holidays KOKOSHNIK - a rather complex structure in the form of a semicircular shield over the forehead and with a crown at the back, or KIKU (KICHKU) - a headdress with protruding protrusions - "horns".
To appear in public with a bare head for a married peasant woman was considered a great shame. Hence the "goofy", that is, disgrace, disgrace.
The word "SHUSHUN" is a kind of village quilted jacket, short jacket or fur coat, we remember it from the popular "Letter to Mother" by S. A. Yesenin. But it is found in literature much earlier, even in "Arapa of Peter the Great" by Pushkin.
Fabrics
Their variety was great, and fashion and industry introduced new ones, forcing the old ones to be forgotten. Let us explain in dictionary order only those names that are most often found in literary works, while remaining incomprehensible to us.
ALEXANDREYKA, or KSANDREYKA, is a red or pink cotton fabric with white, pink or blue stripes. It was readily used for peasant shirts, being considered very elegant.
BAREZH - light woolen or silk fabric with patterns. Dresses and blouses were most often sewn from it in the last century.
BARAKAN, or BARKAN, is a dense woolen fabric. Used for furniture upholstery.
PAPER. Be careful with this word! Reading from the classics that someone put on a paper cap or that Gerasim gave Tanya a paper handkerchief in “Mumu”, one should not understand this in the modern sense; "Paper" in the old days meant "cotton".
HEADSET - spoiled "grodetour", dense silk fabric.
GARUS - rough woolen fabric or similar cotton.
DEMICOTON is a dense cotton fabric.
DRADEDAM - thin cloth, literally "ladies'".
HITCH - the same as poskonina (see below). In Turgenev's story of the same name, Biryuk is wearing a wicked shirt.
ZAPRAPEZA - a cheap cotton fabric made of multi-colored threads. Made at the factory of the merchant Zatrapeznov in Yaroslavl. The fabric disappeared, and the word "shabby" - everyday, second-rate - remained in the language.
KAZINET - smooth semi-woolen fabric.
KAMLOT is a dense woolen or half-woolen fabric with a strip of coarse working.
KANAUS is a cheap silk fabric.
KANIFAS - striped cotton fabric.
KASTOR is a kind of thin dense cloth. Used for hats and gloves.
CASHMERE is an expensive soft and fine wool or semi-wool.
CHINA - smooth cotton fabric, usually blue.
KOLENKOR - cheap cotton fabric, one color or white.
KOLOMYANKA - homemade variegated woolen or linen fabric.
CRETON is a dense colored fabric used for upholstery and damask wallpaper.
LUSTRINE - glossy woolen fabric.
MUKHOYAR - variegated cotton fabric with an admixture of silk or wool.
NANKA is a cotton dense fabric popular among peasants. By the name of the Chinese city of Nanjing.
PESTRA - coarse linen or cotton fabric made of multi-colored threads.
FPGA is a dense cotton fabric with a pile, reminiscent of velvet. The word is of the same origin as plush. Plis was used to sew cheap outerwear and footwear.
POSKONINA - homespun canvas made of hemp fiber, often used for peasant clothing.
PRYUNEL - thick woolen or silk fabric from which ladies' shoes were sewn.
SARPINKA - thin cotton fabric in a check or strip.
SERPYANKA - coarse cotton fabric of rare weaving.
TARLATAN is a transparent, lightweight fabric similar to muslin.
TARMALAMA is a dense silk or semi-silk fabric from which robes were sewn.
TRIP is a fleecy woolen fabric like velvet.
FULAR - light silk, from which head, neck and handkerchiefs were most often made, sometimes the latter were therefore called foulards.
CANVAS - light linen or cotton fabric.
SHALON - thick wool from which outerwear was sewn.
And finally, about some COLORS.
ADELAIDE is a dark blue color.
BLANGE - flesh-colored.
DOUBLE - with overflow, as it were, in two colors on the front side.
WILD, WILD - light gray.
MASAKA - dark red.
PUKETOVY (from the spoiled "bouquet") - painted with flowers.
PYUSOVY (from the French "puce" - flea) - dark brown.
