8/29/14

Hair History: Ramshorns


Around the end of the 13th century, a very popular form of hairstyle was the Ramshorn, which was created by parting the hair down the centre and coiling the hair over the ears around into a scroll like that of a ram's horn. All noblewomen of the time had long hair and great care was given to this style, sometimes even fashioning the ends into pointed horns to mimic the rams head as closely as possible. In the bible, horns were often used for symbols of strength and power, so we can deduce that noblewomen of the time wore their hair to symbolize this as well. It was a more common, conservative style for married noble women with the addition of a circlet hood or hat fastened to the top. Single women tended to favor the more flowy and bejeweled hairstyles. This style became popular again in Europe in the later 15th century with the addition of silks, ribbons and veils interwoven into the side horns. Jewelled brooches were often included as part of the dressing at the top of the head to show wealth and status. This style of hairstyle was not suited for the working classes, who would have found it most impractical. A lot of late 20th century sci fi movies and TV used medieval hairstyles and their base for women character hair styles. We can see the Ramshorn style mimicked in 20th century pop culture in the infamous Princess Leia cinnamon bun hairstyle in the Star Wars movie series.