Wallachia folk costumes

Bucharest eTwinning team

Formely crossed by commercial roads linking the Orient to the Western world and to the well known transhumance of the Transylvanian sheperds, who used to bring their flocks to the danube swamps in winter, Wallachia has always enjoyed a privileged status regarding inte-zonal cultural exchanges and access to the new material, sold in villages by ”mărghidani” (travelling salesman). The gold and silver metal thread, the colouredarici, silk., fluturi (spangles) and beads usedin the embroidery and the alesături of the costume pices have been contributing to their upgrading and to the diversification of the colour scheme since the end of the 18th century. In the south of Wallachia- the Vlașca, Ilfov and Teleorman ethnographic areas - the traditional folk costume focuses on same elements shwongeast-Balkan influence: the cut of the ”poturi” (men’s trousers with a very large seat),the use of black silk and coloured ”găitane” to decorate the thick frieze, the use by women of the ”fes”, of the ”chemuleț” and the ”icușari” and ”mahmudele” gold coins for the ceremonial adornment of the head.

Ilfov

Ilfov

The women’s folk costume of the northern Ilfov area have taken over certain features from the Transylvanian costumes – ia with ciupag – due to the sheperds incursions into the Danubian moorland, as well as from the Wallachian costume worn in the Arge; villages – the association of the ”fota creață” worn at the back, with ”zăvelcă” (skirt) with stripes and”alesături”. On the sleeves the blouse has a decoratio patterned in straight rows of altiță.With the men’s costume, the basic pieces the ”mintean scurt” (short coat) made of a green woolen fabric which is ”năvădită”, over which coloured ”găitane” (braids) and cloth are applied to create an ample geometrical composition dominated by spiral motifs.

Vlașca

Vlașca

The Vlașca’s women’ costume stands out in the Romanian traditional attire both through its somptuous and precious embroideries and through the ingenious coordination of its pars. The solemn character of the apparel is expressed by the particular way of covering and adorning the head of married women with the raw silk ”maramă” around it in a sophisticated style. In Vlașca, teh marama has one corner-shaped end falling over the foreshead, while the other end hangs loosely over the bosom. On special occasions young women of well-to-do families also used to cover their forehead with a ”cordea cu icușari” or ”mahmudele” (ribbon with gold coins).

Teleorman

The particular feature of Teleorman costume is rendered by the use of cotton fabric ”cu cinar” (stripped with thicker warped threads for the manufacturing of festive ”cămăși” (blouses) Their cut belongs to the Danube Plain costume type (gathered around the neck on a narrow collar impressive due to their generous dimension and temperate decorations. Sometimes only the ”altiță” (stream of ornaments) is swen on the sleeves to allow for a full view of the beautiful fabric ”cu cinar”. The ”boscele” (rectangualr aprons) worn in pairs are wowen in wool, with red stripped ”trup” (main part) and a richly decorated ”prag” (group of horizontally place ornaments) adorned with vegetal, zoomorphic and anthropoporphous motifs. Through their decorations, the ”boscele” personalize each woman, as each of them creates another variant of decoration.

Râmnicu-Sărat

The hallmarks ofthe traditional women’s folk wear in the Râmnicu Sărat area are, on the one hand, the length of the sleeve and its decorative design – narrow altiță, white încreț and râuri displayed satingly an, on the other hand, the use of an archaic embroidery point, called ”bătrânesc” (slinged) always made with cherry-coloured wool. The ”fota” stands out through the rich decoration of the ”căpătâi ”(front part) and of the ”bata de pe poale” (the hem trimming) made with metal thread and polichrome wool.

Argeș

The old costume of Argeș region is even today an apparel of a remarkable beauty and decorative richness. The presence of the silver or gilded metal thread, of spangles and beadsalongsidethe polychrome woolen yarn and the white or cream-coloured silk thread, distinguished each piece of clothing as an ornamental composition of its own. Thus, the festive fota, decorated with a broad festoon all around, is sometimes placed on the wall of the room, as an ornamental piece.The men s costume is simple, elegant, with similarities in the costumes ofthe neighbouring sub-Carpathians areas. Worth=mentioning are theamplecut of the straight wide=sleeved shirts and the refinement of the embroidery made in silk and golden threads with spangles.

Prahova

Spectacular through th erichnes of its decoration and chromatics, the Prahova folk costume fits into the folkwear worn in hilly regions, for women defined by the fotă, and for men by the shirt with fustanella. Men s festive costumes worn by young lads of well-to-do families distinguished themselves by the gorgeous shirt, richly adorned with floral embroideries, ennobled with spangles.

Muscel

Typical of the Muscel married women s headwear is the association of a raw silk marama (headkerchief), of extreme lenght, and adorned on its entire suface with a spectacular decoration, wovenin white silk, red, yellow and blue cotton and silvery or golden thread, with a legătoare brodată (embroidery wide ribbon), placedon theforehead, to hide the hair and fasten the headkerkchief.Other elements distinguishedthe women s costumeof Muscelare:the vry long sleeves gathered around the cuff, the predominant use of golden and silvery threads in embroideringthe blouses and skirts, as well as the accurate geormetry observed in the decorative motifs (rhombuses, X-es, spirals.

Muscel

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