Ancient checked dress may be Europe’s oldest two-colour garment
A reconstruction of the dress from an Iron Age grave in the Netherlands, created by Prehistorisch Dorp in Eindhoven
Hanna Geels
A 2800-year-old red and blue checked dress found in an Early Iron Age grave in the Netherlands might be the oldest double-colour woven garment in Europe.
The skeleton of the elite individual who once wore this striking outfit had completely decayed due to harsh, sandy soil. But through mineralisation underneath metallic jewellery, remnants of the much-decayed and now-brown wool dress provide evidence that the dyed textiles came from clothing, says Karina Grömer at the Natural History Museum, Vienna.…
