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This is an example of a style of clothing which crossed cultural boundaries in the tenth to thirteenth centuries. The wearer might be Roman, Armenian, or Persian, but the subtle details of her outfit suggest an Easterner.
Her headdress is a type related to the turban, but wrapped in a distinctive manner, which can be seen by pointing your mouse at the headdress. It was called ’isaba in Arabic and Persian (see the page entitled ‘Stepping Out’ for more information), sharpash in Armenian, and probably savanion in Greek. This particular one is ikat cloth, that is, made from yarn tie-dyed prior to weaving. Ikat cloths of the period were made of cotton rather than the more recent silk, and were most associated with Yemen at the time and traded widely throughout the region.1 The style of this headdress indicates that this woman is probably Armenian or Persian, for in Roman use plain colours were more usual, and the method of wrapping fully concealed the head, as can be seen on the more typical outfit on another page.
Her coat, or kabadion / kavadion in Greek,2 kaftan in Persian,3 and qaba in Arabic,4 is a style that the Romans regarded as being in the Persian fashion on account of the prominent decoration down the front opening. In this case, the decoration is a band of pearled rondels. (Mouse over the women's chest to get the detail in a new window.)
Plain sashes like this were less favoured by women in Romania than other nationalities in the region. More common for Romeai were leather belts, narrow throughout the period, but with broader ones, often with metal ornaments, gaining popularity for the more affluent in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.
Outfit by Timothy Dawson