of the vase-painter; if commonly worn, they would probably be more frequently represented in art. [140] B.M., E. 336. [141] Athens Central Museum, 1285. [Illustration: FIG. 38.—Vase-painting—Dress with two Overfolds. _Face page_ 96.] VI MATERIALS AND ORNAMENTATION The fabrics in use for Greek dresses presented considerable variety. The commonest materials were naturally woollen, but linen and silk were used for more luxurious garments, and a kind of leather jerkin known as διφθέρα[142] was sometimes worn by peasants. [142] Aristophanes, _The Clouds_, 72; Plato, _Crito_, 53 D. That the woollen materials used themselves varied considerably in texture, is proved by some fragments actually found in a tomb at Kertch in the Crimea, and published in the _Comptes rendus_ in 1878. These date for the most part from the fourth century B.C., but one at least probably goes back to the fifth century. They are in most cases rather loosely woven, so that the separate threads are clearly visible, and a bright object could be seen through the material. The oldest piece is composed of such fine threads that it is almost transparent; other pieces have a texture not unlike that of woollen crêpe. A somewhat coarser piece, the threads of which are very strong, has a portion of a seam remaining, which is oversewn with strong woollen thread. In addition to very finely woven woollen materials, the more luxurious of the Greeks wore also many varieties of linen, and in some cases even silk. Pollux tells us that the long linen chiton was worn by the Athenians and Ionians, and many references are to be found in ancient literature to different kinds of linen, coming from places usually in Asia or the more easterly of the Ægean islands. Of these the most commonly mentioned are ἀμόργινα, garments made of linen from the flax of Amorgos, and βύσσινα, made of βύσσος, a yellowish kind of flax, coming especially from India and Egypt. We learn from Aristophanes[143] that the χιτώνιον ἀμόργινον was transparent, so that we may conclude that the linen from which it was made was very fine indeed; perhaps it resembled a very fine cambric. That βύσσος was a linen of some kind, we are told by Pausanias,[144] and Pollux gives us the information that it came from India. That it was known in Egypt also, is testified by Herodotus,[145] who tells us of its use for mummy-cloths. It was probably rather a mark of luxury when worn by the Greeks, for Simætha[146] tells us that she wore a χιτών of it when going out on a festive occasion. [143] _Lys._, 150. [144] VI., 21. [145] II., 86. [146] Theocritus, II., 73.