Chlamys

Frieze of a man wearing a chlamys. Ai-Khanoum.

Statue of Ptolemy III in the guise of Hermes wearing the chlamys cloak. Ptolemaic Egypt.

A chlamys (Ancient Greek: χλαμΰς) was an ancient Greek piece of clothing, namely a cloak. The chlamys was typically worn by Greek soldiers in the 5th to 3rd centuries BC. The chlamys was made from a rectangle of woollen material about the size of a blanket, typically bordered. It was usually pinned at the right shoulder. It could be worn over another item of clothing, but was often worn as the sole item of clothing by young soldiers and messengers. The chlamys was typically worn by the army and - wrapped around the arm - could be used as a light "shield" in combat. The chlamys continued into the Byzantine period, when it was often much larger, worn sideways-on with a clasp at the shoulder, and nearly reaching the ground at front and back.