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  Ancient Greece was one of the cradles of civilization. They developed art, philosophy, poetry, drama and mathematics to sophisticated levels that are still studied today. The people of Athens developed some of the earliest principles of democracy while their rivals in Sparta are still celebrated for courage and martial prowess. The empire of Alexander the Great spread Greek culture throughout the Mediterranean. People of ancient Greece wore simple clothing well-suited to Greece's warm climate.
  
  

Types

• The main source of information about ancient Greek clothing and hairstyles comes from artwork such as vases and statues. Although movies and television give the impression that the ancient Greeks mostly wore white, paint samples from statues and and paintings from vases show that their clothing was quite colorful and decorated with elaborate patterns.
  
  Clothing was mostly homemade and multi-purpose. The same piece of fabric could act as a tunic, shroud and blanket. The main articles of clothing were a tunic, called either a peplos or a chiton, and a kind of cloak known as a himation. Outside both men and women wore boots, sandals or soft shoes but usually remained barefoot while at home.
  
  

Women's Clothing

• The peplos was a large rectangle of wool fabric. It was folded along the upper edge so that the folded section hung to the waist. After being wrapped around the body, it was fastened at the shoulders with either a pin or a brooch. Openings were left for the arms and the open side could be left open or sewn or pinned shut.
  
  The chiton was a large, wide rectangular piece of light weight cloth such as linen. It was wrapped around the body, sewn up the sides, sewn or pinned at the shoulders an held in place with a belt. Excess material was shaped into sleeves which and fastened at the upper arm.
  
  The outfit was completed with a himation draped across both shoulders like a shawl or diagonally across the torso. Women would sometimes add a shawl called an epiblema, instead. They would sometimes add a flat-brimmed hat with a high crown.
  
  

Men's Clothing

• Men typically wore a chiton like those worn by women, but the masculine version was usually shorter, falling to the knees or thighs while the feminine version fell to the floor. They would wear a short chiton called an exomis for horseback riding and exercise. Like women, men completed their outfits with a himation. Young men sometimes wore a short cape called a chalmys while riding. Men sometimes went out with a broad-brimmed hat called a petasos.
  
  

Hairstyles

• Hairstyles varied between time periods, but both men and women typically wore their hair long. Short hair was reserved for slaves and women in mourning. Women often wore their hair wavy or curly and held in place by a variety of scarves and headbands.
  
  In the epic poem the "Iliad", Homer frequently describe warriors such as Achilles with long flowing hair. The Spartans especially believed that long hair made a handsome man more striking and an ugly man more fearsome.
  
  

Military Dress

• Greek warriors, known as hoplites, were quite showy. They went to battle in either bronze armor shaped to the body or linen armor covered in bronze scales, bronze shin guards called greaves and a bronze helmet. The helmet was either polished to a mirror finish or painted in bright colors and topped with a horse hair crest. Under his armor, the warrior wore a blue or red chiton. The warriors would have been an impressive sight as they marched to battle in the bright Mediterranean sun.