The clothing of the people in biblical times was made from wool, linen, animal skins, and perhaps silk. Most events in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament take place in the Ancient Near East, from the perspective of the people of Israel in the Southern Levant. Thus most biblical clothing is Israelite clothing, as well as that of cultures which they have contacted or interacted with. They wore underwear and cloth skirts.
Complete descriptions of the styles of dress among the people of the Bible is impossible because the material at hand is insufficient. Assyrian and Egyptian artists portrayed what is believed to be the clothing of the time, but there are few depictions of Israelite garb. One of the few available sources on Israelite clothing is the Bible.
Israelite clothing
Males
Headwear
Depictions show some Hebrews and Syrians bareheaded or wearing merely a band to hold the hair together. Hebrew people undoubtedly also wore head coverings similar to the modern keffiyeh, a large square piece of woolen cloth folded diagonally in half into a triangle. The fold is worn across the forehead, with the keffiyeh loosely draped around the back and shoulders, often held in place by a cord circlet. Men and women of the upper classes wore a kind of turban, cloth wound about the head. The shape varied greatly.
The High Priest would've worn a particular kind of priestly turban. In the Second Temple period, many Jews would've worn a sudra.
Undergarments
ʿezor, ḥagor The earliest and most basic garment was the ʿezor ( , all pronunciations are approximate)Biblestudytools.com Hebrew lexicon: 'ezor; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon or ḥagor ( ),Biblestudytools.com Hebrew lexicon: chagowr; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon an apron around the hips or loins, that in primitive times was made from the skins of animals. It was a simple piece of cloth worn in various modifications, but always worn next to the skin. Priests wore an ʿezor of linen known as a ephod. If worn for mourning, it was called a saq. The ʿizār worn by Muslims as an undergarment as part of the ihram clothing worn during the Hajj is a cognate of ʿezor; it is also a term still in use Yemen.
When a belt or girdle held garments together, the cloth was also called an ʿezor or ḥagor.
Ketonet The ʿezor later became displaced among the Hebrews by the ketonet or tunic ( ,Biblestudytools.com Hebrew lexicon: kethōneth; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon translated into Greek as chitōn) an undertunic, corresponding most nearly to a long shirt. The ketonet appears in Assyrian art as a tight-fitting undergarment, sometimes reaching only to the knee, sometimes to the ankle.
In its early form, the ketonet was sleeveless and even left the left shoulder uncovered. In time, men of leisure wore ketonet with sleeves. In later times, anyone dressed only in the ketonet was described as naked (, , , ); deprived of it he would be absolutely naked.
Ṣādin The well-off might also wear a ṣādin ( )Biblestudytools.com Hebrew lexicon: ṣādhı̄n; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon under the ketonet. This long undergarment had sleeves and was of fine linen.
Outer garments
Simlā The simlā ( ),Biblestudytools.com Hebrew lexicon: simlāh; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius LexiconSee also simlāh. was the heavy outer garment or shawl of various forms. It consisted of a large rectangular piece of rough, heavy woolen material, crudely sewed together so that the front was unstitched and with two openings left for the arms. Flax is another possible material. It is translated into Koine Greek as "himation" (ἱμάτιον, ),Biblestudytools.com Greek lexicon: himation; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon and the ISBE concludes that it "closely resembled, if it was not identical with, the himation of the Greeks."
During the day, it was protection from rain and cold, and at night when traveling Israelites could wrap themselves in this garment for warmth on their journey during the Three Pilgrimage Festivals of Deuteronomy 16:16. (see ). The front of the simlā also could be arranged in wide folds (see ) and all kinds of products could be carried in it (See , ).
Every respectable man generally wore a simlā over the ketonet (See ), but since the simlā hindered work, it was either left home or removed when working. (See ). From this simple item of the common people developed the richly ornamented mantle of the well-off, which reached from the neck to the knees and had short sleeves.
Meʿil The meʿil ( ,Biblestudytools.com Hebrew lexicon: me'īl; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon translated into Greek as stolḗ) stands for a variety of garments worn over the undergarment like a cloak (, ), but used only by men of rank or of the priestly order (, , ). The me'ı̄l was a costly wrap (, , , ) and the description of the priest's meʿil was similar to the sleeveless bisht (; Antiquities of the Jews, III. vii. 4). This, like the meʿil of the high priest, may have reached only to the knees, but it is commonly supposed to have been a long-sleeved garment made of a light fabric.
Adderet, ma'aṭafa At a later period the nobles wore over the simlā, or in place of it, a wide, many-folded mantle of state (adderet, Biblestudytools.com Hebrew lexicon: addereth; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon or maʿṭāfā ) made of rich material (See ), imported from Babylon (). The leather garment worn by the prophets was called by the same name because of its width.
Priestly vestments
The Torah provides for specific vestments to be worn by the priests when they are ministering in the Tabernacle., and The high priest wore eight holy garments (bigdei kodesh). Of these, four were of the same type worn by all priests and four were unique to the high priest.
Those vestments which were common to all priests were the priestly tunic, priestly sash, priestly turban, and priestly undergarments.
The vestments that were unique to the high priest were the priestly robe, ephod (vest or apron), priestly breastplate, and priestly golden head plate.
In addition to the above "golden garments", the high priest also had a set of white "linen garments" (bigdei ha-bad) which he wore only on Yom Kippur for the Yom Kippur Temple service.
Religious accessories
Siṣit The Torah commanded that Israelites wear tzitzit, tassels or fringes (ṣiṣit, Biblestudytools.com Hebrew lexicon: ẓiẓit; The Hebrew lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon) attached to the corners of garments (see , ). Numbers 15:39 records that the tassels were to serve as reminders to keep the Lord's commandments.
Tefillin Phylacteries or tefillin are boxes containing biblical verses attached to the forehead and arm by leather straps,Tefillin, "The Book of Jewish Knowledge", Nathan Ausubel, Crown Publishers, NY, 1964, p.458 and were in use by the late Second Temple period (see ).
Footwear
Naʿelayim
Sandals (naʿelayim) of leather were worn to protect the feet from burning sand and dampness. Sandals might also be of wood, with leather straps (, ). Sandals were not worn in the house nor in the sanctuary (see (), ). To walk about without sandals was otherwise a sign of great poverty () or of mourning (, ).
Female
Simlāh, ketonet, ṣādin While a woman's garments mostly corresponded to those of men: they wore simlā and ketonet, they also evidently differed in some ways from those of men (see ). Women's garments were probably longer (compare , , , ), had sleeves (), presumably were brighter colors and more ornamented, and also may have been of finer material. Also worn by women was the ṣādin, the finer linen underdress (see , ).
Miṭpaḥat
Furthermore, mention is made of the miṭpaḥat, a kind of veil or shawl (). This was ordinarily just a woman's neckcloth. Other than the use by a bride or bride-to-be (), prostitutes () and possibly others (), a woman did not go veiled (, ), except for modesty (). According to ancient laws, it reached from the forehead, over the back of the head to the hips or lower. In the early 20th century, It was noted that the neckerchief of female Palestinian fellahin was similar to such descriptions.
Ancient Egyptian clothing
Israelites contacted Egypt in the Bible from the earliest patriarchs (beginning in ), to the flight into Egypt by Joseph, Mary, and the infant Jesus (in ). The most notable example is the long stay from Joseph's (son of Jacob) being sold into slavery in , to the Exodus from Egypt in , during the Second Intermediate Period and New Kingdom. A large number of Judeans (such as Jeremiah) also began permanent residence in Egypt upon the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BC, during the Third Intermediate Period.
In Egypt, flax (linen) was the textile in almost exclusive use. The wool worn by Israelites was known, but considered impure as animal fibres were considered taboo. Wool could only be used for coats (they were forbidden in temples and sanctuaries). Egyptian fashion was created to keep cool while in the hot desert. People of lower class wore only the loincloth (or schenti) that was common to all. Slaves often worked naked. Sandals were braided with leather or, particularly for the bureaucratic and priestly classes, papyrus. Egyptians were usually barefoot. The most common headdress was the klafta or nemes, a striped fabric square worn by men.
Certain clothing was common to both genders, such as the tunic and the robe. Around 1425 to 1405 BC, a light tunic or short-sleeved shirt was popular, as well as a pleated skirt. Women often wore simple sheath dresses, and female clothing remained unchanged over several millennia, save for small details. Draped clothes, with very large rolls, gave the impression of wearing several items. Clothing of the royal family, such as the crowns of the pharaohs, was well documented. The pardalide (made of a leopard skin) was traditionally used as the clothing for priests.
Wigs, common to both genders, were worn by wealthy people of society. Made from real human and horse hair, they had ornaments incorporated into them. Heads were shaved. Usually children were represented with one lock of hair remaining on the sides of their heads.
Heavy and rather voluminous jewelry was very popular, regardless of social class. It was made from turquoise, metals like gold and silver, and small beads. Both men and women adorned themselves with earrings, bracelets, rings, necklaces and neck collars that were brightly colored.
Hellenistic Greek clothing
Greeks and Greek culture enter the Biblical narrative beginning with First Maccabees in the 2nd century BCE, midst the wars of the Diadochi. Likewise the narrative of the New Testament (which was written in Greek) entered the Greek world beginning about .
Clothing in ancient Greece primarily consisted of the chiton, peplos, himation, and chlamys. Despite popular imagination and media depictions of all-white clothing, elaborate design and bright colors were favored. Greek clothing consisted of lengths of linen or wool fabric, which generally was rectangular. Clothes were secured with ornamental clasps or pins and a belt, sash, or girdle might secure the waist.
Peplos, Chitons The inner tunic was a peplos or chiton. The peplos was worn by women. It was usually a heavier woollen garment, more distinctively Greek, with its shoulder clasps. The upper part of the peplos was folded down to the waist to form an apoptygma. The chiton was a simple tunic garment of lighter linen, worn by both genders and all ages. Men's chitons hung to the knees, whereas women's chitons fell to their ankles. Often the chiton is shown as pleated.
Chlamys, Himation The chlamys was made from a seamless rectangle of woolen material worn by men as a cloak.