How to Dress Like an Ancient Egyptian

Wear a tunic. Solid white linen tunics were a very common garment worn by both Egyptian men and Egyptian women for everyday wear.

• Men: your tunic should fall right below the knee, lengthwise as was customary in ancient Egypt.^[1]The sleeves were normally somewhat loose and usually ranged from at least ¼ to ¾ length for men as well. Currently, tunics for men that extend to the knee can be found at costume shops, medieval collectible shops, Amazon and eBay.
• Women: your tunic should extend down to your ankle.^[2] Sleeves are optional. Be sure to wear a fitted or tailored tunic. Egyptian women wore very tightly fitted garments which were often hemmed to display their shapely curves and also to prevent the garment from becoming frayed.^[3]When searching for a tunic, be sure to search specifically for an Egyptian-style tunic dress as the majority of tunics available now are only shirt-length. The correct tunics for women can also be found at costume shops, as well as on Amazon and eBay.
• Keep it simple. Many of today’s tunic’s come in a variety of colors and styles. However, in 
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• Wear a loincloth. Male Egyptian laborers mainly wore linen loincloths or skirts that were tied at the waist while the rest of the material was draw between the legs to cover the groin area and buttocks.^[5]

  • Men who wear loincloths should ideally be shirtless. The only other items typically worn with loincloths are jewelry, adorned collars, headpieces and sandals.
  Buy Egyptian headpieces. Egyptians wore headpieces made of fabrics, gems, jewelry and gold for both class status and practical reasons. Egyptian headpieces are often the most extravagant and recognizable part of the ensemble. Without them, it can be difficult to distinguish Egyptian clothing from that of Rome or Greece. Egyptian headpieces are available for purchase at costume shops and online retailers.

  • Choose an appropriate headdress based on your gender and its historical representation. There were hundreds of crown varieties worn by the ancient Egyptians which represented status, divinity and many other characteristics, so be sure to perform research on any crown you may buy.^[6]The Names (striped head cloth) headdress for example, is a blue and gold stripped cloth with an asp in the center which was worn by pharaohs such as King Tutankhamen. The tall, tight-fitting cap crown is most attributed to Queen Nefertiti.
  Wear strappy brown or tan sandals. Ancient Egyptian footwear was created using leather hide and papyrus as straps to secure the hide to the soles of the feet. To replicate the look, sandals should be made from leather with flat soles and the majority of the foot should be exposed.^[7]

  • Gladiator-style, t-strap or goddess sandals will complement the look well.
  Go barefoot. Many ancient Egyptians who were of the lower classes went barefoot throughout their entire lives. Depending on the environment, you can pull off an even more authentic look by not wearing shoes at all.^[8]
  Wear an abundance of jewelry. This should include, earrings, wrist cuffs, bracelets, armbands, anklets and rings.^[9]

  • Be sure to wear plenty of gold and/or copper pieces. Gold was in abundance in ancient Egypt.
  • Don’t forget to add gems or stones. Pendants or rings such as turquoise, emeralds, obsidian, onyx and rock crystal. Pearls were also extremely common as they were native to Egypt.^[10]
  • Avoid wearing silver, as it was not available in ancient Egypt.^[11]
  ancient Egypt, tunics were almost exclusively white.^[4]