English

A bronze figure of the goddess Nike, who is wearing a peplos over a chiton.

Noun

peplum ‎(plural peplums)

1. A peplos, an Ancient Greek garment formed of a tubular piece of cloth, which is folded back upon itself halfway down, until the top of the tube is worn around the waist, and the bottom covers the legs down to the ankles; the open top is then worn over the shoulders, and draped, in folds, down to the waist; compare the Roman palla.
2. A veil.

Quotations

• 1837: Ralph Cudworth, D. D., The True Intellectual System of the Universe (First American Edition, with references and an ccount of the author by Thomas Birch, M. A. F. R. S.)

  And this was Neith, or Athena, that God thus described, "I am all that was, is, and shall be, and my peplum or veil, no mortal could ever uncover." [...] Peplum is properly a womanish pall or veil, embroidered all over and consecrated to Minerva.

• 1838: The North American Review, volume XLVII

  The outer garment was called the peplum, and was used more for occasions of ceremony than for ordinary convenience, as it was very long and ample, and, from the manner of putting it on, must have been inconvenient to the wearer. It was sometimes wound double round the body, ...

• 1904: G. Woolliscroft Rhead, The Treatment of Drapery in Art

  Over this they adopted the Greek peplum, under the name of palla. This garment, however, was exclusively confined to the gentler sex, and was never worn, as was the peplum among the Greeks, by men.

Noun

peplum ‎(plural pepla)

1. A genre of Italian film featuring historical or biblical epics
2. An individual film in this genre

Synonyms

• (film genre): sword-and-sandal

See also

• Wikipedia article on the palla
• peplos
• palla
• exomis
• himation
• chlamys
• chiton