FALSE SLEEVE GARMENTS IN THE HISTORY OF GEORGIAN CLOTHING

Abstract

The aim of the present work is to study one of the oldest constituent elements of the costume

of the Georgian nobles - the false sleeve garment.

This is the first attempt, by means of interdisciplinary research, to present the types of clothes with false sleeves in a historical perspective, to follow their changes during the 6^th-19^th centuries and to get to know their symbolic essence.

The main characteristic detail of this type of clothing is the long sleeve, which was not meant to be worn and was a distinguishing mark of the nobles. In Georgian reality, false sleeves are confirmed on capes, cloaksand dresses. The term "false sleeves" itself is not found in the historical sources and itcan be said that it is an ethnographic attainment that accurately determines the functional purpose of thementioned element.

The emergence of a garment with false sleeves in the Georgian costume set is related to the same oriental world. We still find its first examples on the reliefs of Achaemenid Iran. The terracotta figures of Anahita, the female goddess of fertility, found as a result of archeological discoveries in the centers of the ancient civilization of Central Asia (Khorezm, Sogdiana, Margiana) are also presented with such capes. We see similar samples in the painting of Balalik-Tepe (6^th century) and Penjiket (7^th -8^th century).

This type of clothing appears in the costume set of Georgian noblemen from the 6^th century in the form of a cape with false sleeves and is fixed until the 11^th century. We suppose that from the 11^th to the 15^th century, it’s no longer in use as we have only  one existing material,  the lower area of a woman image with false sleeve cloak is remained in the paintings of the 13thcenturychurch of the Castle of Kavkasidzes. In the 15^th century, slightly modified it occurred again and remained as an integral element of Georgian clothing until the end of the 19^th century. In 10^th century, along with capes, there are three types of dresses with false sleeves. At the turn of the 13^th -14^th centuries, the fourth type is a double-sleeved dress.And in the 16^th century, the fifth type - a sleeveless slit and a false sleeve under the armpit.In the 16^th century, there arealso two types of clothes with false sleeves.

The political, socio-economic and cultural situation in the country, as well as the issues of the country's foreign orientation and contacts with the surrounding world, played an important role in shaping the appearance of the clothes. Accordingly, the peculiarity of each era left a certain mark on the appearance of the clothes. A clear example of this is a garment with false sleeves.

Key Words: False Sleeve; Clothing; a dress; Monumental painting; a lay person; Ornamen;