So far any mantle of sufficient length might be folded, but two
distinctive features of Roman dress, the umbo (_f_) and the sinus
(_c e_), have yet to be considered. The sinus (_c e_) is that
upper hanging portion with the curved edge downwards which shows
conspicuously upon the right thigh. When the toga has been brought
round to the front of the right leg, it has attained its greatest
width (_e c e_), although on the figure less space is required for
it. It is therefore folded over at the top, the upper part falling
forward, down almost to the knee. It may be easily raised (see fig.
5) and used as a lap--hence the name sinus--to carry fruits and
flowers, so often represented in ancient art. The fold at _c_ thus
becomes the upper edge, and forms the balteus, which may be made
still more effective by being rolled round and slightly twisted, as
in figs. 2 and 5. A variety again was sometimes produced by lifting
the hanging edge (_e_) of this sinus up on to the shoulder, so as to
cover the right arm with that alone, and Quintilian hints that it
is not ungraceful to throw back the extreme edge of that again, an
effect still to be admired in some of the ancient sculptures. Fig.
5 is in the act of raising the edge. The umbo (_f_), a projecting
mass of folds in front of the body, like the boss of a shield, was
formed _after_ the rest of the dress had been put on in a very simple
manner: a part of the front upright line (_a b_), almost covered up
by the adjustment of the upper shoulder portion (_g_), was pulled out
and made to hang down over the balteus or belt-like part (fig. 6). It
is clearly traceable in both statues here given (figs. 2 and 3), and
fig. 4 is intended to show the formation of the umbo more clearly by
the right hand holding the edge, which falls over the fingers instead
of the balteus. In proportion as the umbo (_f_) projects, so of
course the end (_a_) is raised from the ground. The smaller figures
(4 and 5) are both drawn without under-garments in order to avoid
confusion. During sacrifice, when necessary to cover the head, the
edge (_b_) nearest the neck was pulled up and made to cover the head,
as in fig. 3, where the entire length of the edge, passing from the
umbo into the sinus, is very clearly visible. The dress here is very
ample, and can spare an extra length, but in the statue of a priest
in the Louvre the head is covered at the expense of the umbo, which
has entirely disappeared. Fig. 6 is intended to show the interlacing
and arrangement of the toga by following the course of the straight
edge alone from _a_ to _d_.
[Illustration: Fig. 6.]
In many ancient statues the sleeves and folds of the tunic, being
very full, are apt to be confounded with the rest, but in the best
style of art this is not the case. Quintilian cautions his orators
against these incumbrances. A difference in size and fulness of the
toga, modified according to the rank of the wearer, may be detected
in coins and sculpture, but in all cases the mode of adjustment
appears to be the same.--One mode of wearing the toga was the Cinctus
Gabinus. It consisted in forming a part of the toga itself into a
girdle, by drawing its outer edge round the body and tying it in a
knot in front, and at the same time covering the head with another
portion of the garment. It was worn by persons offering sacrifices,
by the consul when he declared war, and by devoted persons, as in the
case of Decius. Its origin was Etruscan, as its name implies. Persons
wearing this dress were said to be _procincti_ (or _incincti_)
_cinctu_ (or _ritu_) _Gabino_.--The colour of the toga worn by men
(_toga virilis_) was generally white, that is, the natural colour of
white wool. Hence it was called _pura_ or _vestimentum purum_, in
opposition to the _praetexta_ mentioned below. A brighter white was
given to the toga of candidates for offices (_candidati_ from their
_toga candida_) by rubbing it with chalk. There is an allusion to
this custom in the phrase _cretata ambitio_. White togas are often
mentioned as worn at festivals, which does not imply that they were
not worn commonly, but that new or fresh-cleaned togas were first put
on at festivals. The toga was kept white and clean by the fuller.
When this was neglected, the toga was called _sordida_, and those who
wore such garments _sordidati_. This dress (with disarranged hair
and other marks of disorder about the person) was worn by accused
persons, as in the case of Cicero. The _toga pulla_, which was of
the natural colour of black wool, was worn in private mourning, and
sometimes also by artificers and others of the lower orders.--The
_toga picta_, which was ornamented with Phrygian embroidery, was
worn by generals in triumphs [TRIUMPHUS], and under the emperors by
the consuls, and by the praetors when they celebrated the games.
It was also called _Capitolina_. The _toga palmata_ was a kind of
toga picta.--The _toga praetexta_ had a broad purple border. It was
worn with the BULLA, by children of both sexes. It was also worn
by magistrates, both those of Rome, and those of the colonies and
municipia; by the sacerdotes, and by persons engaged in sacred rites
or paying vows. Among those who possessed the _jus togae praetextae
habendae_, the following may be more particularly mentioned: the
dictator, the consuls, the praetors (who laid aside the praetexta
when about to condemn a Roman citizen to death), the augurs (who,
however, are supposed by some to have worn the trabea), the decemviri
sacris faciundis, the aediles, the triumviri epulones, the senators
on festival days, the magistri collegii, and the magistri vicorum
when celebrating games. In the case of the tribuni plebis, censors,
and quaestors, there is some doubt upon the subject. The toga
praetexta is said to have been derived from the Etruscans, and to
have been first adopted, with the latus clavus [CLAVUS LATUS], by
Tullus Hostilius as the royal robe, whence its use by the magistrates
in the republic. The toga praetexta and the bulla aurea were first
given to boys in the case of the son of Tarquinius Priscus, who,
at the age of fourteen, in the Sabine war, slew an enemy with his
own hand. Respecting the leaving off of the toga praetexta, and the
assumption of the toga virilis, see IMPUBES and CLAVUS LATUS. The
occasion was celebrated with great rejoicings by the friends of the
youth, who attended him in a solemn procession to the Forum and
Capitol. This assumption of the toga virilis was called _tirocinium
fori_, as being the young man’s introduction to public life. Girls
wore the praetexta till their marriage.--The _trabea_ was a toga
ornamented with purple horizontal stripes. There were three kinds
of trabeae; one wholly of purple, which was sacred to the gods,
another of purple and white, and another of purple and saffron,
which belonged to augurs. The purple and white trabea was a royal
robe, and is assigned to the Latin and early Roman kings, especially
to Romulus. It was worn by the consuls in public solemnities,
such as opening the temple of Janus. The equites wore it at the
_transvectio_, and in other public solemnities. Hence the _trabea_
is mentioned as the badge of the equestrian order. Lastly, the toga
worn by the Roman emperors was wholly of purple. It appears to have
been first assumed by Julius Caesar.--The material of which the toga
was commonly made was wool. It was sometimes thick and sometimes
thin. The former was the _toga densa_, _pinguis_, or _hirta_. A new
toga, with the nap neither worn off nor cut close, was called pexa,
to which is opposed the _trita_ or _rasa_, which was used as a summer
dress. The toga was originally worn by both sexes; but when the stola
came to be worn by matrons, the toga was only worn by the meretrices,
and by women who had been divorced on account of adultery. [STOLA.]
In war the toga was laid aside, and replaced by the PALUDAMENTUM and
SAGUM. Hence _togatus_ is opposed to _miles_.