Ancient Romans’ winter clothes

If you think that during wintertime, several tunic layers, a coat, and thick wool socks may have been enough to keep Roman men warm, you might forget that the Roman legions conquered Gaul, part of Germany and Britain, where winters are merciless. Obviously they had to adapt to survive.

What clothing was available then?

First of all, the clothes that allowed the Romans to survive in the cold climate of Northern Europe were raincoats: 'paenula' and 'sagum'. The second type was large and heavy (and therefore warm). A hood distinguished Paenulu. According to written sources found on the Rhine, the Romans sometimes also used subpaenuli, a protective undercover, worn under raincoats. They were very resistant to water because they contained lanolin - animal wax.

The Romans also had to protect their usually open legs from frost. For this, socks (udones) were used. Socks was mentioned in one of the Vindolanda letters found in a Roman camp in Britain. According to it, soldiers received such gifts from families. Socks were made in two ways: stitching pieces of fabric and crocheting. Artifacts of every type have been found in Gaul and even in Egypt.

To protect the legs, rectangular pieces of fabric were used, which were wrapped around the legs and tied with a ribbon of fabric. They were probably of German origin, but almost certainly used by Roman soldiers in Britain, who were previously in Germany. The leg bindings are very similar to the putty worn by soldiers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Another way to protect the feet from the cold - pants. The earliest evidence of this relates to the period of the Dacian Wars (beginning of the 2nd century A.D.). Even though the Romans believed that pants were a determining factor in barbarism, they highly appreciated its usefulness.