Page:Costume, fanciful, historical, and theatrical (1906).djvu/213

XIV heavy coil low down on the nape of the neck, a style rendered necessary by the custom of carrying weights on the head.

The poor Hindu, distrustful of other securities, invests such worldly wealth as he possesses in jewellery for his wife, who appears laden with bracelets, of painted wood or coloured glass. As many as twelve rings jingle from the much-pierced rim of either ear, while an ornament, frequently of preposterous size, is affixed to one nostril, and in addition there are anklets, necklaces, and toe and finger rings.

If the outdoor dress of Persian women be any criterion, their husbands must be the most jealous in the world, for not one of the charms accredited to frail femininity is allowed to transpire. The veil and all-enveloping mantle maintain a profound reserve, so that whether the wearer be old or young, slender or stout, attractive or repulsive, remains for ever an impenetrable mystery. Before quitting the seclusion of the Andaran, the Persian woman assumes an effective disguise. First she draws on a pair of dark green or grey trousers, one leg at a time, for there is no connection between the two, and these are fastened at the waist by a belt. Their shape is peculiar ; for, baggy to the knees, they fit closely at the calf and encase the foot after the manner of a stocking. Over these is worn an ample mantle of black silk, cotton, or muslin, covering the head and shrouding the entire figure, the ends drawn up at the bust and held by strings, which are crossed and tied round the neck. A thick white veil—an essential item from the age of nine—falls from the forehead to the waist in front, and is pinned at the back of the head to keep it in