Michigan Painter - ABV 343 6 - symposion - athletes - Oxford AM 1965-97

''Perizoma'' (

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

, plural; ''perizomata'') is a type of

loincloth A loincloth is a one-piece garment, either wrapped around itself or kept in place by a belt. It covers the genitals and sometimes the buttocks. Loincloths which are held up by belts or strings are specifically known as breechcloth or breechclo ...

that was worn in Ancient Greece. The perizoma was typically worn by manual laborers or athletes. This garment could be worn independently or with a short chiton or even underneath a longer

chiton Chitons () are marine molluscs of varying size in the class Polyplacophora ( ), formerly known as Amphineura. About 940 extant and 430 fossil species are recognized. They are also sometimes known as sea cradles or coat-of-mail shells or suck ...

. Homer references the perizoma in his epic The Illiad underscoring its role in ancient Greek dress. The perizoma is thought to have originated with the

Minoan civilization The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age culture which was centered on the island of Crete. Known for its monumental architecture and energetic art, it is often regarded as the first civilization in Europe. The ruins of the Minoan palaces at K ...

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

. Surviving depictions show it being worn by male and female acrobats (for example, in the ''

Bull-Leaping Fresco The Bull-Leaping Fresco is the most completely restored of several stucco panels originally sited on the upper-story portion of the east wall of the Minoan palace at Knossos in Crete. It shows a bull-leaping scene. Although they were frescos, the ...

''). A perizoma was possibly worn by

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

during his crucifixion. It is a standard feature of the

crucifixion in the arts Crucifixions and crucifixes have appeared in the arts and popular culture from before the era of the pagan Roman Empire. The crucifixion of Jesus has been depicted in a wide range of religious art since the 4th century CE, frequently including th ...

. However, the Roman custom was to crucify victims naked, and there is no evidence to suggest that Jesus was an exception. Perizoma was likely added by later artists to preserve modesty (see

fig leaf thumb In culture, a "fig leaf" or "fig-leaf" is a literal or figurative method of obscuring an act or object considered embarrassing or distasteful with something of innocuous appearance. The use of an actual fig leaf for the purpose originates i ...

) and first appeared in the 8th century.

Aachen Cathedral Aachen Cathedral () is a Catholic Church, Catholic church in Aachen, Germany and the cathedral of the Diocese of Aachen. One of the oldest cathedral buildings in Europe, it was constructed as the royal chapel of the Palace of Aachen of Holy Rom ...

claims to have the actual relic of the perizoma, preserved inside the

Marienschrein The Marienschrein (Shrine of Mary) in Aachen Cathedral is a reliquary, donated on the order of the collegiate church, chapter of Mary around 1220 and consecrated in 1239. Along with the Karlsschrein, the artwork, which is from the transitional p ...

reliquary.

Etymology

The word perizoma is derived from ''peri'' "around, about" and ''zoma'' "loin-cloth, drawers, band, belt" File:Group of Vatican 58 - ABV 345 3 - athletes in perizomata and trainers - Roma MNEVG - 06.jpg, Athletes in perizomata (boxers, wrestlers, runner, jumper, diskobolos, acontist) and draped bearded trainers with switch File:Group of Vatican 58 - ABV 345 3 - athletes in perizomata and trainers - Roma MNEVG - 04.jpg, Bearded Greek athletes in perizomata (boxers, wrestlers, runner, jumper, diskobolos, acontist) and draped bearded trainers Image:Michigan_Painter_-_ABV_343_2_-_symposion_-_athletes_in_perizomata_-_Würzburg_MvWM_L_328_-_05.jpg, Bearded Greek athletes wearing perizomata running File:Cristo crucificado.jpg, ''Christ Crucified'' by

Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptised 6 June 15996 August 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the Noble court, court of King Philip IV of Spain, Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He i ...

shows Jesus wearing a perizoma

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite book , first=Larissa , last=Bonfante , author-link=Larissa Bonfante , title=Etruscan Dress , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CILWtN-fSG8C&pg=PA19 , publisher=JHU Press , year=2003 , isbn=9780801874130 , pages=19–20 {{cite book, first=Richard , last=Viladesau , title=The Beauty of the Cross: The Passion of Christ in Theology and the Arts from the Catacombs to the Eve of the Renaissance , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=twLyKjwEPxoC&pg=PA188 , publisher=Oxford University Press , year=2006 , isbn=9780195188110 , page=188 {{cite book , first=David , last=Tombs , title=Religion and the Politics of Peace and Conflict , chapter=Prisoner Abuse: From Abu Ghraib to the Passion of the Christ , editor-first1=Linda , editor-last1=Hogan , editor1-link=Linda Hogan (ethicist) , editor-first2=Dylan , editor-last2=Lehrke , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d9tJAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA182 , publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers , year=2009 , isbn=9781556350672 , series=Princeton Theological Monograph Series , pages=182–83 {{cite book , first=Joe , last=Nickell , title=Relics of the Christ , url=https://archive.org/details/relicsofchrist00joen , url-access=registration , publisher=University Press of Kentucky , year=2007 , isbn=9780813172125 , pag
106
} {{Cite book, last=Condra, first=Jill, url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/156808055, title=The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Clothing Through World History: Prehistory to 1500CE, publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group, year=2008, isbn=978-0-313-33662-1, location=Westport, Connecticut, pages=79, oclc=156808055 Undergarments Roman-era clothing Greek clothing Iconography of Jesus Relics associated with Jesus Crucifixion of Jesus

Etymology

See also

References