History Of Hairstyling – Ancient Greece

To contrast from the Egyptians, classical Greece hairstyles where pulled back into a chignon style and
was grown much longer. Many styles involved braiding the hair and fixing it to the head and decorating
withgreek2 flowers, headbands, ribbons and pieces of metal. Blondes were very rare and therefore many
women tried dying their hair blonde and also red. Ancient Greece hairstyles also involved sprinkling Gold
powder into the hair. Men would have short or shaved hair and they would wear beards unless they
were a soldier.

Haircuts and styles identified the region you come from

Overall, the different regions of ancient Greece created their own identities with different looks,
influencing looks in hair-ware forever. Curly locks were a trademark hairstyle during this time, and is a
look that has endured for many centuries.

Haircuts and styles identified the origin you belong to

The hair they wore could easily identify the origin of aristocratic women of ancient Greece. Athenian
women wore their hair in a chignon at the back of the crown or the nape of the neck, often secured by
gold or ivory handcrafted hairpins. In Sparta, women preferred ponytails threaded with pearls and
beads. Meanwhile, it was the women in Cyprus that invented some of the earliest types of hairpieces.
Quite ingenious in design, they involved a single or several wire meshes extending from ear to ear, used
to support and display spiral set locks. Often these were not their own, and the meshes also served the
wearer to support other decorative touches. These were most commonly used to push the wearer’s hair
forward, from the occipital bone up to the apex of the head, to build up height and the shape of the soft,
elliptical designs that were so popular. This silhouette was to become the inspiration for later
generations, such as the opulent hair crafting of pre-revolutionary France and their British counter parts.
Would you like to learn a couple of haircuts? Here is a video for your enjoyment:

Chignon – its genesis!

Hairstyles were also never complete without some kind of adornment. These had to also abide by the
laws of symmetry. And as they were creative in how they dressed and moderngreek3adorned
themselves, they created many hairstyling trademarks that have been used extensively throughout
history. For example, it was the ancient Greeks that created the first chignon: the bun or drape of hair
most often held at the nape of the neck. The snood was also another Greek innovation, being ribbons, or
a scarf, used to cradle and decorate a chignon. Sometimes these ribbons extended around the forehead,
offering even more elaborate ornamentation, especially when flowers and precious gems were woven
into them.

Laurel Leaves – Crown of Beauty!

The finishing touches also included a wreath of bay or laurel leaves worn around the head; these were
commonly worn by men and was carried over into Roman times. Fresh and dried flowers and ribbons
were more commonplace in women. Some of the most popular adornments were wreaths made of
flowers, myrtle, ivy, scented oils and precious stones. Handmade ivory, gold and silver combs and clips as
well as the earliest hair pins were created to secure these hair creations.

Written by Sam Maalouf on March 5, 2017.