Colors and Dress色服

In the beginning of Silla the system of dress and its colors cannot be looked into. When the twenty-third generation came, that of King Beopheung, a system was first fixed by which the colors worn by the people of the six bu marked the high from the low, but it was still the custom of the barbarians.

In the second year of Jindeok's reign Kim Chunchu went into Tang and asked to take up the usages of Tang. Emperor Taizong allowed it by rescript and gave him robes and a belt besides. He came back at last and put it in practice, and what was barbarian was changed for what was Chinese. In the fourth year of King Munmu's reign the dress of women was altered as well, and from this time on the robes and caps were the same as those of China.

When our Taejo received the mandate, the laws and measures of the state followed the old ways of Silla for the most part. Then the robes of the men and women of the court to this day are perhaps the system left from what Chunchu asked for and brought back.

Your servant went three times as envoy to the superior state, and the robes and caps of the company were no different from those of the people of Song. Once I entered the court while it was still early and stood at the gate of the Zichen Hall, and an officer of the gate came and asked, "Which one is the envoy of the Goryeo people?" I answered, "I am," and the man laughed and went away.

Again, when Liu Kui and Wu Shi, envoys of Song, came on a courtesy mission and were lodged in the guest hall, at a banquet they saw singing women dressed in the manner of the country. They called them up onto the steps, and pointing at the wide-sleeved coats, the colored silk sashes, and the great skirts, they sighed and said, "These are all the robes of the three dynasties. We did not reckon that they were still worn here."

By this it may be known that the ceremonial dress of women today is perhaps also the old way of Tang.

The years of Silla are far off and distant, and its writings and histories are broken and fallen away, so its system cannot be counted one by one. Only what can still be seen is set down here in rough form.

King Beopheung laid down that from the rank of taedaegakgan to daeachan the robe was purple; that from achan to geupchan the robe was scarlet, with ivory tablets besides; that daenama and nama wore blue; and that from daesa to seonjeoji the robe was yellow.

Ichan and japchan wore brocade caps. Pajinchan, daeachan, and geumha wore scarlet caps. The daenama of the sangdang and the daesa of the jeogwi wore braided cap strings.

In the ninth year after King Heungdeok ascended the throne, the eighth year of Taihe, he sent down an edict and said:

"There are high and low among men, and honorable and mean among ranks, and since the names and the rules are not the same, the dress is different as well. Yet the customs grow thin and shallow, and the people vie in extravagance and splendor. They prize only what is rare among the goods of other lands, and they turn from what their own soil brings forth as mean and rustic. The order of the rites has fallen into overreaching, and the customs have come to ruin. I dare to follow the old statutes and to set forth a clear command, and if any truly offends against it on purpose, the state has its settled punishments."

Jingol daedeung may wear the bokdu cap as they please. For the outer robe, the half-sleeve coat, and the trousers alike, woolen cloth (罽), embroidery (繡), brocade (錦), and gauze (羅) are forbidden. For the belt, white jade polished and figured is forbidden. For the boots, purple hide is forbidden, and for the boot straps, white jade with hidden figures is forbidden. The socks use damask (綾) and anything under it freely, the shoes use hide, silk thread, and hemp freely, and the hemp cloth is of twenty-six sae or under.

For jingol women, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, and gauze are forbidden for the outer robe, and woolen cloth, embroidery, and gauze are forbidden for the inner robe, the half-sleeve coat, the trousers, the socks, and the shoes alike. For the shawl, woolen cloth is forbidden, and so is embroidery worked with gold or silver thread, with peacock tails, or with kingfisher feathers. For combs, inlay of seulseul (瑟瑟) and tortoiseshell are forbidden; for hairpins, carving and engraving and strung beads are forbidden; and for caps, inlay of seulseul is forbidden. The hemp cloth is of twenty-eight sae or under, and among the colors ocher yellow (赭黃) is forbidden.

For head rank six, the bokdu cap uses fine gauze (繐羅), coarse silk (絁), plain silk (絹), and hemp cloth (布). The outer robe uses only floss silk (綿紬), thick silk (紬), and hemp cloth. The inner robe uses only small-figured damask, coarse silk, plain silk, and hemp cloth. The trousers use only coarse silk, plain silk, floss silk, and hemp cloth. The belt uses only black rhinoceros horn (烏犀), brass, iron, and copper. The socks use only coarse silk, floss silk, and hemp cloth. For the boots, black deer hide and purple hide with a crinkled grain are forbidden. The boot straps use black rhinoceros horn, brass, iron, and copper. The shoes use only hide and hemp. The hemp cloth is of eighteen sae or under.

For head rank six women, the outer robe uses only medium- and small-figured damask, coarse silk, and plain silk. For the inner robe, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, and yachora gauze (野草羅) are forbidden. For the half-sleeve coat, woolen cloth, embroidery, gauze, and fine gauze are forbidden. For the trousers, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, fine gauze, and designs painted in gold are forbidden. For the shawl, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, and designs painted in gold or silver are forbidden. For the sleeveless vest and the short coat alike, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, pobangna gauze (布紡羅), yachora gauze, and designs painted in gold or silver are forbidden. For the outer skirt, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, fine gauze, yachora gauze, designs painted in gold or silver, and tie-dye are forbidden. For the waist ties, woolen cloth and embroidery are forbidden. For the inner skirt, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, and yachora gauze are forbidden. For the belt, braiding made of gold or silver thread, of peacock tails, or of kingfisher feathers is forbidden. For the sock tops, woolen cloth, gauze, and fine gauze are forbidden. For the socks, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, fine gauze, and yachora gauze are forbidden. For the shoes, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, and fine gauze are forbidden. For combs, inlay of seulseul is forbidden. For hairpins, pure gold, silver worked with carving and engraving, and strung beads are forbidden. The cap uses fine gauze, sheer silk (紗), and plain silk. The hemp cloth is of twenty-five sae or under, and among the colors ocher yellow, purple (紫), purple-pink (紫粉), gold dust (金屑), and crimson (紅) are forbidden.

For head rank five, the bokdu cap uses gauze, coarse silk, plain silk, and hemp cloth. The outer robe uses only hemp cloth. The inner robe and the half-sleeve coat use only small-figured damask, coarse silk, plain silk, and hemp cloth. The trousers use only floss silk and hemp cloth. The belt uses only iron. The socks use only floss silk. For the boots, black deer hide and purple hide with a crinkled grain are forbidden. The boot straps use only brass, iron, and copper. The shoes use hide and hemp. The hemp cloth is of fifteen sae or under.

For head rank five women, the outer robe uses only dokjik cloth without figures. The inner robe uses only small-figured damask. For the half-sleeve coat, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, yachora gauze, and fine gauze are forbidden. For the trousers, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, fine gauze, yachora gauze, and designs painted in gold are forbidden. The shawl uses damask, plain silk, and anything under them. For the sleeveless vest, woolen cloth, embroidery, silk floss, yachora gauze, pobangna gauze, designs painted in gold or silver, and tie-dye are forbidden. For the short coat, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, yachora gauze, pobangna gauze, fine gauze, designs painted in gold or silver, and tie-dye are forbidden. For the outer skirt, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, yachora gauze, fine gauze, designs painted in gold or silver, and tie-dye are forbidden. For the waist ties, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, and gauze are forbidden. For the inner skirt, woolen cloth, embroidery, silk floss, yachora gauze, designs painted in gold or silver, and tie-dye are forbidden. For the belt, braiding made of gold or silver thread, of peacock tails, or of kingfisher feathers is forbidden. For the sock tops, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, and fine gauze are forbidden. For the socks, woolen cloth, embroidery, brocade, gauze, fine gauze, and yachora gauze are forbidden. The shoes use only hide and anything under it. The comb uses plain tortoiseshell and anything under it. The hairpin uses white silver and anything under it, and there is no cap. The hemp cloth is of twenty sae or under, and among the colors ocher yellow, purple, purple-pink, yellow dust (黃屑), crimson, and scarlet (緋) are forbidden.

For head rank four, the bokdu cap uses only sheer silk, coarse silk, plain silk, and hemp cloth. The outer robe and the trousers use only hemp cloth. The inner robe and the half-sleeve coat use only coarse silk, plain silk, floss silk, and hemp cloth. The belt uses only iron and copper. For the boots, black deer hide and purple hide with a crinkled grain are forbidden. The boot straps use only iron and copper. The shoes use ox hide, hemp, and anything under them. The hemp cloth is of thirteen sae or under.

For head rank four women, the outer robe uses only floss silk and anything under it. The inner robe uses only small-figured damask and anything under it. The half-sleeve coat and the trousers use only small-figured damask, coarse silk, plain silk, and anything under them. The shawl and the short coat use only plain silk and anything under it. The sleeveless vest uses only damask and anything under it. The outer skirt uses only coarse silk, plain silk, and anything under them. The waist tie is as the skirt is, and the ties use wolla gauze (越羅). There is no inner skirt. For the belt, embroidered braiding, yachora gauze, seungcheonna gauze (乘天羅), and wolla gauze are forbidden, and only floss silk and what is under it may be used. The sock tops use only small-figured damask and anything under it. The socks use only small-figured damask, coarse silk, floss silk, and hemp cloth. The shoes use hide and anything under it. The comb uses plain ivory, horn, and wood. For hairpins, carving and engraving, strung beads, and pure gold are forbidden, and there is no cap. The hemp cloth is of eighteen sae, and among the colors ocher yellow, purple, purple-pink, yellow dust, scarlet, crimson, and dull purple (滅紫) are forbidden.

For commoners, the bokdu cap uses only plain silk and hemp cloth. The outer robe and the trousers use only hemp cloth. The inner robe uses only plain silk and hemp cloth. The belt uses only copper and iron. For the boots, black deer hide and purple hide with a crinkled grain are forbidden. The boot straps use only iron and copper. The shoes use hemp and anything under it. The hemp cloth is of twelve sae or under.

For commoner women, the outer robe uses only floss silk and hemp cloth. The inner robe uses only coarse silk, plain silk, floss silk, and hemp cloth. The trousers use coarse silk and anything under it. The outer skirt uses plain silk and anything under it. The ties use only damask and anything under it. The belt uses only damask, plain silk, and anything under them. The sock tops use cloth without figures. The socks use coarse silk, floss silk, and anything under them. The comb uses plain ivory, horn, and anything under them. The hairpin uses brass (鍮石) and anything under it. The hemp cloth is of fifteen sae or under, and the colors are the same as for head rank four women.

The system of dress of Goguryeo and of Baekje cannot be looked into, so only what is seen in the histories of the successive dynasties of China is set down here.

The Bei shi says that the people of Goguryeo all wear the jeolpung (折風) on the head, which is shaped like a peaked cap, and that scholars add two bird feathers to it. The cap of the noble is called the sogol (蘇骨), and it is often made of purple silk and adorned with gold and silver. They wear wide-sleeved jackets, wide-legged trousers, white leather belts, and yellow leather shoes, and the women put a border on their skirts and jackets.

The Xin Tang shu says that the king of Goguryeo wears robes of five colors, makes his cap of white silk, and has gold studs throughout his leather belt. The great ministers wear caps of blue silk and those next to them caps of crimson silk, and they insert two bird feathers and mix gold and silver in the studs. Their jackets have tube sleeves and their trousers are wide-legged, and they wear white leather belts and yellow leather shoes. The common people wear coarse hempen clothes and put on peaked caps, and the women wear a kerchief on the head.

The Cefu yuangui says that in Goguryeo at their public gatherings all wear brocade and embroidery and adorn themselves with gold and silver. The daega and the jubu all wear the chaek (幘), which is like a gwanchaek but has no back, and the soga wear the jeolpung, which is shaped like a peaked cap.

The Bei shi says that the dress of Baekje is roughly the same as that of Goguryeo. When they attend court or bow at the sacrifices they add wings to both sides of the cap, but not on military business. From the rank of naesol down, the cap is adorned with a silver flower. Jangdeok wear a purple belt, sideok a black belt, godeok a red belt, gyedeok a blue belt, daedeok and mundok all a yellow belt, and from mudok down to geugu all a white belt.

The Sui shu says that in Baekje, from jwapyeong to jangdeok they wear a purple belt, sideok a black belt, godeok a red belt, gyedeok a blue belt, daedeok and below all a yellow belt, and from mundok down to geugu all a white belt. The rule for the cap is the same throughout, and only naesol and above adorn it with a silver flower.

The Tang shu says that the king of Baekje wears a wide-sleeved purple gown and blue brocade trousers, a cap of black silk adorned with a golden flower, a white leather belt, and black leather shoes. The officials all take scarlet for their robes and adorn their caps with a silver flower, and the common people may not wear scarlet or purple.

The Tongdian says that in the dress of Baekje the men are roughly the same as in Goguryeo, and that the robe of the women is like a gown but with sleeves a little larger.