ILLUSTRATING FABRICS AND DRESS IN THE AEGEAN NEOLITHIC
Channel: European Association of Archaeologists
Date: 2020-11-19

Knowledge on fabrics and clothing in the Neolithic Aegean is difficult to approach since archaeological textiles have not been found and there is little and unclear evidence from the iconography. What we know about the textile production and the Neolithic costume is based on tool finds and some iconographic evidence of puzzling interpretation. Textile decoration, however, was often adopted as a craft transfer by the Middle and the Late Neolithic potters and thus provides us with indirect information for the recognition of specific weaving and decorative techniques. Tracing costume elements can be achieved through the detailed study of a relatively small group of anthropomorphic figurines and objects, which - despite their abstraction and the limitations of their small scale- give us valuable data about the production and the decoration of fabrics and clothing of this period. Both these sources, particularly their combination, testify the existence of elaborate textiles of high quality and very sophisticated fashion couture, with a tendency for exaggeration and luxury, culminating in the early phases of the Late Neolithic. This paper aims at tracing representations of fabrics, garments and accessories in various expressions of the Neolithic figurative art, mainly figurines and ceramics, focusing on local traditions, foreign influences and artistic loans. Reference will be made to technical iconographic issues, for instance, how Neolithic illustrators solved the problems of depicting costume elements on a tiny scale, how they set iconographic priorities and choices, and what technical means and tricks they used. Finally, it will discuss how the illustrations of fabrics and clothing items can help us to appreciate the skills of the artists and the level of maturity of figurative art in the Neolithic Aegean and its neighbouring regions.


Author(s): Sarri, Kalliope (Centre for Textile Research - CTR, Saxo Institute, University of Copenhagen)