Propylaeum

In Roman times, hooded cloaks were highly valued and widespread garments because of their weather resistance. This study, however, illuminates more than the classical questions of all archaeological studies by typology, chronology, material and distribution. It is focused on a hitherto neglected aspect of this everyday object: its role in social communication. The historical and archaeological source material is analyzed with regard to the following questions: Are there persons or groups of persons whose habitus (in the sense of the French sociologist P. Bourdieu) include hooded cloaks? Which actors can be identified? Do they use special shapes of cloaks for that purpose? In what situations do they wear the garment and what messages do they convey? Where do the meaning assignments used come from? How do the actors deal with them? The areas under investigation are Italy and the north-western provinces of the Roman Empire during the period of the late Republic up to the Late Antiquity.