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TOGA
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:''This article is about the toga, a Roman garment. For the Japanese village see
Toga, Toyama''.
Image:toga1.png frame|Roman clad in toga
The '''toga''' was a distinctive garment of Ancient
Rome. It consisted of a long sash of cloth, on the order of perhaps twenty feet (6 m) in length. This sash was wrapped around the body in a particular way, and was generally worn over a
tunic. The toga was invariably made of
wool, even if the tunic it was worn over was often made of
linen. For most of Rome's history, the toga was a garment worn exclusively by men, while women wore the
stola. Non-citizens were forbidden from wearing a toga.
History
The earliest costume of the Roman was a thick woollen cloak worn over a loin-cloth or apron. This woollen cloak was called the ''toga'', and was the dress of women as well as men and boys. It was taken off indoors, or when hard at work in the fields, but it was the only decent attire out-of-doors. (We learn this from the story of
Cincinnatus: he was ploughing in his field when the messengers of the
Roman Senate Senate came to tell him that he had been made
Roman dictator dictator, and on seeing them he sent his wife to fetch his toga from the house so that they could be received appropriately (
Livy iii. 26, 9). The truth of the story may be doubtful, but it nevertheless expresses the Roman sentiment on the subject.)
As time went on, and the Romans became more civilised, their garments changed. They adopted the shirt (''tunica'', or in Greek
chiton (costume) chiton) which the Greeks and Etruscans wore, made their toga more bulky, and wore it in a looser manner. The result was that it became useless for active pursuits, such as those of war. Thus, its place was taken by the more handy ''
sagum'' (woolen cloak) on all military occasions. In times of peace, too, the toga was eventually superseded by the ''
laena'', ''
lacerna'', ''
paenula'', and other forms of buttoned or closed cloaks.
However, the toga did remain the court dress of the
Roman Empire Empire (Spart. ''Sever.'' 1, 7). It was in it that the
Cliens clients paid their visit to their
Patronus patron, not forgetting to wear boots (''
calceus'') with it (Juv. i. 119; cf. Tertull. ''de Pallio'', Mart. i. 103, 5, 6; Hor. ''Sat.'' i. 3, 31-2). It was also worn by the spectators in the
Circus Maximus Circus at Rome (Suet. ''Aug.'' 40; Dio Cass. lxxii. 21), and its irksomeness causes
Juvenal to sigh for the freedom of the country, where only the dead man, who was buried in it, is bound to wear it (Sat. iii. 172; cf. Mart. ix. 58, 8).
Martial is equally enthusiastic in his praises of the unconventionality of the provinces (i. 49, 31; iv. 66, 1-3; x. 47, 5; xii. 18, 5, 17); and
Pliny the Younger makes it one of the attractions of his
Tuscan villa that there is no necessity of wearing the toga (Ep. v. 6, § 45; cf. vii. 3, § 2). In spite, however, of these protests, its use as an official garment lingered on until the time of
Theodosian (Cod. Theod. xiv. 10, 1), when it was supplanted by the
paenula.
Significance
The same process that removed the toga from every-day life gave it an increased importance as a ceremonial garment, as is often the case with clothing. As early as the third century B.C., and probably even before, the toga (along with the ''
calceus'') was looked upon as the characteristic badge of Roman citizenship. It was denied to foreigners (
Lives of the Twelve Caesars Suetonius ''Claud.'' 15), and even to banished Romans (Pliny ''Ep.'' iv. 11, 3), and it was worn by
magistratus magistrates on all occasions as a badge of office. In fact, for a magistrate to appear in a Greek cloak (''
pallium'') and sandals was considered by all, except unconventional folk, as highly improper, if not criminal (cf.
Cicero ''pro Rab.'' 9, 26).
Augustus, for instance, was so much incensed at seeing a meeting of citizens without the toga, that, quoting
Virgil's proud lines, "''Romanos rerum dominos gentemque togatam''", he gave orders to the
aediles that in future no one was to appear in the
Roman Forum Forum or
Circus Maximus Circus without it (Suetonius ''Aug.'' 40).
Because the toga was not worn by soldiers, it was regarded as a sign of peace. A civilian was sometimes called ''togatus'', "toga-wearer", in contrast to ''sagum''-wearing soldiers.
Cicero's ''
De Officiis'' contains the phrase ''cedant arma togæ'': literally, "let arms yield to the gown", meaning "may peace replace war," or "may
military power yield to
civilian power." This phrase became the
motto of the
state U.S. state of
Wyoming.
Varieties
There were many kinds of toga, each used differently.
*''Toga virilis'' (or ''toga alba'' or ''toga pura''): A plain white toga worn on formal occasions by most Roman men of legal age, generally about fourteen to sixteen years and older. (cf. Mart. viii. 28, 11)
*''Toga candida'': "Bright toga"; a toga bleached to a dazzling white by chalk (Isidorus ''Orig.'' xix. 24, 6), worn by candidates for public office (cf. Polybius, x. 4, 8). Thus
Persius speaks of a ''cretata ambitio'', "chalked ambition". Oddly, this custom appears to have been banned by
plebiscitum plebiscite in 432 BC, but the restriction was never enforced (Liv. iv. 25, 13). The term is the source of the English word ''candidate''.
*''Toga praetexta'': An ordinary white toga with a broad purple stripe on its border. It was worn by:
**Freeborn boys who had not yet come of age (Liv. xxiv. 7, 2).
**All
curule magistrates (cf. Cic. ''post red. in Sen.'' 5, 12; Zonar. vii. 19).
**Ex-curule magistrates and -dictators, upon burial (Liv. xxxiv. 7, 2) and apparently at festivals and other celebrations as well (cf. Cic. ''Phil.'' ii. 4. 3, 110).
**Some priests (e.g., the
Flamen Dialis,
Pontifices,
Tresviri Epulones, the
augurs, and the
Arval brothers; Liv. xxvii. 8, 8; xxxiii. 42).
**During the Empire, the right to wear it was sometimes bestowed as an honor independent of formal rank.
**According to tradition, the
Kings of Rome.
:Those with the right to wear a ''toga praetexta'' were sometimes termed ''laticlavius'', "having a broad crimson stripe".
Image:Contemporary portrayal of a toga picta.jpg right|110px|thumb|A contemporary portrayal of a ''toga picta'' (click to enlarge)
*''Toga pulla'': Literally just "dark toga". It was worn mainly by mourners, but could also be worn in times of private danger or public anxiety. It was sometimes used as a protest of sorts—when Cicero was exiled, the Senate resolved to wear ''togae pullae'' as a demonstration against the decision (''post red. in Sen.'' 5, 12). Magistrates with the right to wear a ''toga praetexta'' wore a simple ''toga pura'' instead of ''pulla''.
*''Toga picta'': This toga, unlike all others, was not just dyed but embroidered and decorated. It was solid purple, embroidered with gold. Under the Republic, it was worn by generals in their
Roman Triumph triumphs, and by the
Praetor Urbanus when he rode in the chariot of the Gods into the circus at the
Ludi Apollinares (cf. Liv. v. 41, 2). During the Empire, the ''toga picta'' was worn by
magistrates giving public
gladiatorial games and by the
consuls, as well as by the emperor on special occasions.
*''Toga trabea'': According to
Servius, there were three different kinds of ''trabea'': one of purple only, for the gods; another of purple and a little white, for kings; and a third, with scarlet stripes and a purple hem (cf. Isid. ''Orig.'' xix. 24, 8), for
augurs and
Salii (''ad Aen.'' vii. 612; cf. ad vii. 188).
Dionysius says that those of
Equites equestrian class wore it as well, but this is not borne out by other evidence.
{{SmithDGRA}}
See also
*
Toga party
External links
-
How to make a toga
-
Clothing for Men in Ancient Rome
-
William Smith's ''A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'' on the toga
-
How to tie a toga
Category:Ancient Rome
Category:Clothing
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:''This article is about the aviation term, for the Roman garment, see
Toga''.
'''TOGA''' is an
acronym used in aviation, standing for Take Off/Go Around. It is used to refer to buttons, often mounted on the throttle quadrant, that allow the engines to quickly be brought to full power, either for
take off or in the event of a
go around. In some cases, during emergencies, such as a
microburst, the TOGA button can be used as a shortcut instead of using the throttle lever.
{{Aviation-stub}}
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