Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
men might sometimes wear it at work, tucking its skirts up into their narrow girdle, to give
freedom of movement. But work clothes usually consisted of a short jacket worn with a
trouserlikegarment.Insomeregionsthewomenworeamplebloomers,drawninroundthe
ankles, but elsewhere they wore tighter breeches, like their men-folk's but usually with an
apron. Both sexes wore girdles about five inches wide. In hot weather men could remove
their jackets and work stripped to the waist, or go one step further and remove their lower
garments, leaving only their loin-cloth, a piece of material passing between the legs and
fixed round the hips; it, too, was subject to regional variation in style. The loincloth was
usuallyofwhitecotton,butitcouldbered,acolorwhichwasbelievedtokeepoffdemons.
cessions to the warm weather other than to loosen their clothing a little to allow the air to
move around their bodies.
(39) Women's undergarment. A shellfish collector wrings out her underskirt.
Cold-weather wear included leggings, and coverings for the lower arms, the latter with
a flap to cover the back of the hands. Straw sandals were the normal footwear, but clogs
(
geta
) with high pegs would be worn for walking in mud or a light fall of snow. Districts
in the north and east had several feet of snow in the winter, and to cope with such con-
