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Bridal Fashion
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There were many specific customs and traditions in fashion that came with a wedding in ancient Rome. There fashion styles set the standard for weddings in a plethora of cultures around the world today! Below, a few special ancient bridal etiquette and fashion styles are explained. Keep scrolling and watch the videos on the bottom to find out and learn more about this fascinating tradition!
tunica recta
bridal tunic / wedding dress
The tunica recta was a relatively plain wedding dress: a white or off-white one piece unfitted tunic that was woven on an upright loom. Similar to bridal dresses today, this tunic also reached from head to toe. However, this tunic was tied together by a very important girdle. This girdle was tied around the waist the morning of the wedding by the bride's mother to symbolize the bride's "purity" using the "knot of Hercules" or nodus Herculaneus. This girdle could only be untied on the wedding night by her new husband.
This is where we get the popular phrase "tying the knot"!
flammeum
saffron bridal veil
The flammeum was another symbol of the bride's submission to her groom.
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always saffron colored
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yellow, red, or even purple because the ancient definition of red could've been any of these colors today
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the color was believed to represent the bride's transition in life and status or fertility
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covered the bride from head to toe
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worn over the tunica recta
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most sources say that the veil did cover the face
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veil was used as a deterrent to evil spirits
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nubere: term for women used to mean "to marry" but literally means to "veil oneself"
tutulus
Roman Bridal Hairstyle
The hairstyle and head dress were very important and focused on at ancient Roman weddings.
On the morning of her wedding day, the bride's first task is to gather flowers and sacred plants from her parents' garden to weave herself a wreath to wear and hold her flammeum in place. The groom, wearing a toga, had a similar wreath of flowers on his head. This floral wreath symbolizes innocence and purity.
The bride's hair was divided into six locks by a hasta caelibaris as a symbol to scare away all evil spirits. These locks were then curled and tied up by vittae. The Vestal Virgins wore their hair this way, so the style must have been an extremely early one.
vittae: ribbons that held the hair together
hasta caelibaris: spear head that was used to divide bridal hair
