Clothing and Appearance in the Parthian World

During the Arsacid dynasty, often called Parthian, which ruled from about 247 BCE to AD 224, clothing commonly paired ankle-length trousers with a fitted jacket or a fuller belted tunic. Jackets could wrap diagonally across the body, while belts gathered fabric at the waist. Parthian art preserves these forms on statues, paintings and coins, showing how garments were arranged and ornamented in different settings.

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Trousers and fitted jackets

Men are often shown in trousers that fall in soft, elliptical folds to the ankles. Some images show the hems drawn close around the leg or tucked into boots. Other figures wear trousers with sharp vertical pleats, while a relief from Bard-e Neshandeh in Khuzestan depicts horizontal folds. The surface of a carving can suggest a light or heavy cloth, but it cannot identify its fibre: the broad vertical pleats have been interpreted as the appearance of heavier cotton, linen or wool.

A near life-size bronze from Shami in Khuzestan, southwestern Iran, shows how several garments could be worn together. Found in 1935 near modern Izeh, the 1.94-metre figure is dated most probably to the first century CE, although a second-century date is also possible. Its long-sleeved jacket closes in a V across the chest, while loose, full outer leggings cover narrower trousers. The outer layer is therefore not a substitute for trousers. The figure’s short jacket wraps diagonally across the torso and is held close by a narrow belt at the waist. That fitted shape suited movement such as hunting on horseback. A fragmentary painting from the Tower Building at Old Nisa, dated to the late first century BCE or early first century CE, shows a similar combination of jacket and legwear.

Tunics and regional forms

Alongside the short jacket, a loose, sleeved tunic could be worn with trousers. Both types of upper garment were belted, but their outlines differed. In western Persia, figures more often wear the short, close-fitting jacket. In Khuzestan, the longer, fuller tunic was more common. Some tunics have bands around the wrists and neckline, probably woven or embroidered, and one or more decorative strips down the front. Belts could be simple bands or carry medallions and plaques.

Images from the later Parthian period distinguish two tunic shapes in particular. A garment with a broad, ornamented belt and a flaring hem appears stiff and full; another hangs in finer pleats from a narrow belt. Both are represented in Khuzestan, where routes from eastern and western Asia met. The combination shows that local dress could bring together several forms rather than follow a single court pattern. In some later depictions an open coat hangs over the tunic, adding another layer that leaves the garment beneath visible.

Women’s garments and public display

Women appear less often in Parthian reliefs, but their dress is distinct in the surviving images. A long, full garment is belted at the waist and falls to the ankles in fine pleats. A veil covers the back of the head. The garment’s length sets it apart from the looser male tunic, while the belt gathers the fabric rather than leaving it to hang straight.

Hatra, a city in northern Iraq, flourished especially in the second century CE. Its local rulers were subordinate to the Parthian king of kings, and members of the ruling family and wealthy community dedicated statues in the city’s temples. Among them, Shapry, daughter of Sanatruq, is shown with several necklaces and a high tiara, a crown or cap decorated with strings of jewels. Ubal, daughter of Jabal, wears a less elaborate version of the local costume, with simpler folds and whorl patterns over the chest. These formal statues present women as worshippers and people of rank in Hatra. A wider account of daily life in the Parthian world sets clothing alongside domestic and working life.

Royal headwear on coins

Small Parthian coins preserve changes in royal headwear across the dynasty. Early portraits show Arsaces wearing a tied head covering. From Phraates II, whose reign began around 132 BCE, kings were generally represented in Parthian dress rather than Greek-style clothing. Under Mithradates II, who ruled from about 122 to 91 BCE, the royal portrait added a tall tiara tied with a diadem. A diadem is a band worn around the head. Other kings wore a broad diadem without the tiara, and the width and cut of the band changed over time.

A silver drachm of Pacorus II in the Metropolitan Museum, dated about AD 78 to 110, shows a domed tiara decorated with curls and a diadem tied around it. On the reverse, a seated archer wears sleeves, trousers and a cloak. The archer may be an idealized king rather than a portrait of a specific ruler, but the coin places royal symbols and Parthian garments in the same compact image. Royal women appear on coins only exceptionally: Queen Musa appears as the queen of Phraates V, wearing a crown and diadem. Her place in the court household is discussed in the article on Musa and royal women.