structural:scholar_edition
Clothing

Good descriptions of Hun period clothing, known from contemporary Central Asian burials to have probably been the khalat, are lacking in Greco-Roman sources. The East Roman historian Priscus reports seeing a Greek merchant who he took for a Hun due to his wearing "Scythian" clothing; this appears to show that the Huns wore a distinct outfit that was part of ethnic identification. Ammianus reports that the Huns wore clothes made of linen or the furs of mice and leggings of goatskin, which they did not wash. While the use of furs and linen may be accurate, the description of the Huns in dirty animal skins and wearing the skins of mice is clearly derived from negative stereotypes and topoi about primitive barbarians. Priscus also mentions the use of various expensive and rare animal furs, and mentions the handmaidens of Attila's queen Kreka weaving decorative linen.

Using finds from modern Kazakhstan, archaeologist Joachim Werner has described Hunnic clothing as probably consisting of knee-length, sleeved smocks (the khalat), which were sometimes made of silk, as well as trousers and leather boots. Saint Jerome and Ammianus both describe the Huns as wearing a round cap that was probably made of felt. Because nomadic clothing had no need for brooches, the absence of this otherwise common item in some Barbarian burials may indicate Hunnic cultural influence. According to Maenchen-Helfen, the Huns' shoes were likely made of sheep's leather. The Bántapuszta figurine is wearing high, bulky boots that are connected to the warrior's chainmail by straps, of a type also described by Priscus.