Ramie Skirt

A skirt is one of the most representative women’s bottoms in Korea. Panels of fabric were sewn together and fine pleats were made at one end to make the waist, to which a waistband with a string at either end was attached. The two strings were tied at the breast. Skirts have been worn since antiquity, and written as sang or gun before the Goryeo Dynasty. In the Three Kingdoms period, skirts with multi-colored stripes were worn, and occasionally an additional hem was attached to the bottom edge of the skirt. The skirt as it is known today was developed in the Joseon Dynasty. Ceremonial skirts include a long skirt with two large bands of gold foil, a long skirt with a single band of gold foil, and a ceremonial outer-skirt. Skirts for daily use include an unlined skirt, a lined skirt, and a quilted skirt. The length of a skirt was in inverse proportion to the length of a jacket. In the early Joseon Dynasty, skirts were short enough to be fastened at the waist, and in the late Joseon Dynasty, they became longer and tightened at the breast as jackets became shorter. Women of lower social standing wore duruchi, which was narrower and shorter than ordinary skirts. In Korea’s early modern times, some women began to wear shorter skirts and skirts with two side seams sewn together.