Introduction to Part I

This introductory chapter give an overview of dress objects from the Roman and late antique periods in Egypt and provides insights into their social function and meaning. It first surveys the site provenances of the dress objects in the Petrie Museum collection, and discusses particular issues that arise in their study (for instance, the use of material from grave assemblages to study dress). The wider range of dress objects in the Petrie museum collection is then surveyed, drawing out examples of notable artefacts that provide insights into important social phenomena in Egypt across the period studied. A strong relationship between dress objects and various stages of the life course is demonstrated, further explored elsewhere in Part I. Other notable insights relate to diachronic change in the construction of life course identities, the embodiment of identities through jewellery that was worn permanently, and the Roman discourse of beauty and adornment as represented in objects like hairdressing equipment. Questions of value, including jewellery as a store of wealth, and the different types of value demonstrated through evidence of wear and repair, are also discussed. Evidence of cosmopolitan societies is presented, especially resulting from the posting of military troops to Egypt. This comprises not only military brooches but also dress objects of Germanic origin such as dress pins and bucket pendants. The changing, context-dependent meaning of jewellery from Egypt with Christian themes and motifs is the final topic, discussing its multiple significance as material embodiment of faith, protective amulet, and expression of religious identity.