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If the coats with hoods aren’t historically accurate, what coats did Chinese people wear prior to the modern period?

Hi! Thanks for the question, and sorry for taking ages to reply!

By "coats with hoods", I assume you're referring to the doupeng/斗篷 (cloak/cape) commonly seen in modern hanfu and guzhuang (drama costumes), like the one below (x):

Chinese people did wear doupeng prior to the modern period, along with other kinds of coats. However, as I mentioned in my post here, historical Chinese doupeng did not have hoods attached to the cloak/cape. That is why many modern doupeng aren't considered historically accurate - because they have hoods attached. Below are examples of more historically accurate, hoodless doupeng (1/2):

In the image on the above left, the model is wearing a separate, detached hood/hat called fengmao/风帽 (wind hat) which was historically worn to keep warm. Below - examples of fengmao (1/2):

Historically, fengmao was often worn with doupeng when travelling during cold weather (x). Below - women wearing doupeng & fengmao in historical art (top row), and Chinese opera performers wearing doupeng & fengmao as part of their costumes (bottom row) (x):

Oftentimes the doupeng & fengmao are matching, which can give the impression that they are attached - but if you look carefully, you can see that they are separate. Below - Chinese opera costume (x):

Below are historical photos of women wearing doupeng in 1920s Beijing - note how they are hoodless (1/2):

Hooded doupeng, in contrast, are more similar to historical western cloaks, such as the below American/European cloaks from the 18th century (1/2):

The hooded doupeng of modern hanfu are likely based on those seen in guzhuang dramas - another instance of drama costumes not being the most historically accurate (x):

An example of a drama with a historically accurate depiction of doupeng & fengmao is the 1987 TV adaptation of Dream of the Red Chamber. As seen in the below images, the characters wear hoodless doupeng & occasionally matching fengmao as part of their winter wardrobe (1/2/3):

The 1994 TV adaptation of Romance of the Three Kingdoms also depicts historically accurate, hoodless doupeng & matching fengmao worn by men (x):

For more references, please check out my doupeng, fengmao, and winter wear tags.

Hope this helps!

Chinese hanfu | Red Fengmao风帽(Ming-style wind hood)

#china #hanfu #chinese fashion #fashion #ming #fengmao #wind hood #cloak #doupeng

Fengmao for children from Tongzhi era of Qing dynasty, the Palace Museum.

#fengmao #hanfu accessories #qing dynasty #children #chinese history #tiger hat #hat #winter hanfu

Did Chinese Muslim women ever wear Weimao?

Hi! Thanks for the question, and sorry for taking ages to reply! (depictions of weimao/mili in Chinese paintings & figurines via):

As far as I'm aware, there's no historical record of Chinese Muslim women wearing weimao/帷帽. It's definitely possible that some Chinese Muslim women wore weimao for purposes of sun/wind/dust protection and modesty in public, just as their non-Muslim counterparts did, but there's no evidence that they ever wore it for religious purposes, if that's what you're asking.

The weimao originated from the mili/幂蓠, and was borne out of practical needs to protect the wearer from the elements and to fit in with social customs. It hid women from the outside world and protected their modesty. For men, who also wore weimao-like hats, social rules dictated that when meeting someone face-to-face, one had to greet them or avoid them according to rules; covering the face avoided many formalities and made things easier. Below - paintings of men wearing weimao-like large hats with skirt-like brims (x):

While changes in society and fashion rendered the weimao obsolete, its practical functions ensured its survival, in a way, in the form of the Hakka liangmao/涼帽 (lit. 'cool hat'), which is believed to have evolved from the weimao. Liangmao is traditionally worn by Hakka women while performing manual work, such as farming and fishing, in order to protect themselves from the sun and insects. Below - Hakka women wearing liangmao (1/2):

As for Chinese Muslim women, historically they would have followed the fashions of their time period, class, and ethnic background. They may or may not have veiled for religious purposes, depending on the sartorial customs of the time. If they did veil for religious purposes, whether or not they used a weimao/mili would have depended on their socioeconomic background. The main wearers of weimao were Han Chinese noblewomen of Buddhist or Daoist belief.

For some ideas on what Chinese Muslim women used as veils historically, below are photos of Hui Muslim women in 1950s China (it's been extremely difficult to find reliable photos/depictions of Chinese Muslim women wearing veil-like garments from earlier time periods). Note how their head garments resemble the traditional fengmao/风帽 (wind hat) more than anything else (1/2/3):

It is, in fact, very similar to the fengmao worn by Chinese Buddhist nuns, as seen below (x). It seems likely that the fengmao was the de facto head garment for Chinese women's religious veiling, regardless of religion, at least up until the modern era: