Mili (veil)

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A Tang dynasty lady holding a mili.[1]

Mili (Chinese: 羃䍦) was typically a body-long veil which was used to conceal the entire body of women from stranger's eyes,[2] which was a sort of burnoose.[3] The mili was perceived as an expression of highest propriety despite its foreign origins.[2] The mili originated from the Rong and Yi people cultures.[2] It was adopted during the Sui dynasty and became popular among Imperial and ducal house ladies who would ride horses in public.[2] The full-body veil was worn in both Sui and Tang dynasties.[4] By the end of the Sui dynasty (581–618 AD), the mili evolved into the weimao; the weimao only covered the face instead of the entire body.[2]

Design and construction[]

The full-body mili adopted from the Tuyuhun ethnic group was a large piece of fabric which was draped over the women's head.[3][5] The mantle of the fabric would fall across the shoulders down to the feet which would then covered most of the body and only allowed the women to see through a small break between the edges.[3][5] The mili was sometimes covered with jewelries.[2]

Some Tang dynasty veils only covered the women's face and neck.[6]

History[]

The mili originated from the Rong and Yi people cultures.[2] The mili appears to have been adopted from the Tuyuhun,[3][5] an ethnic minority of Qinghai, and was originally worn by both men and women in the late 6th century.[7] It was adopted during the Sui dynasty and became popular among Imperial and ducal house ladies who would ride horses in public.[2] By the end of the Sui dynasty (581 – 618 AD), the mili became less conservative and evolved into the weimao as it was no longer required to conceal the entire body and instead only the face had to be concealed.[2]

The full-body mili was still worn during the Emperor Taizong's time.[7] Despite its foreign origins, the full-body mili continued to be worn during the Tang dynasty as it was considered ideal for protecting a women's modesty since it concealed the entire body.[7] Its purpose was to prevent men on the streets from looking at women.[3][8] One of the inconveniences of the mili was that it provided a convenient disguise for rebels when they wanted to escape the authorities’ notice.[3][5]

When the full-body veil fashion started to fell out of favour for the weimao, Emperor Gaozong of Tang issued two imperial edicts (one in 663 AD and one in 671 AD) to order women to abandon the wear of weimao and return to the full-body mili in order to enforce public decency.[7][3][2][5] These two edicts went almost completely ignored.[2]

Due to those imperial edicts issued by Emperor Gaozong, women decided to substitute the mili with other forms of fashion.[3][5] One of the alternatives was the use of wearing hoods that only allowed the face be shown.[3][5] The other alternative to the mili was the wearing of a curtain bonnet, which originated from Tokâra, a hat with a veil which ran around the sides and back and would fall on the shoulders. The veil was made of gauze-like material and could be adorned with jade and kingfisher feathers.[3][5] However, the Emperor Gaozong was not satisfied with those because they let the face be shown, and he wanted the burnoose to return and cover the face.[3][5]

His imperial edicts were only effective for a short period of time as women started re-wearing the weimao, which covered their faces but allowed their clothing and bodies to be exposed.[7] By the time of Wu Zetian's ascendancy, the weimao was back in fashion and had spread everywhere while the mili had gradually disappeared.[7] By 705 AD, the mili had completely disappeared.[3]

Derivatives and influences[]

  • Weimao - A wide brimmed hat with shoulder-length veil

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Introduce of Hanfu Face Veil: Mili & Weimao". www.newhanfu.com. Retrieved 2021-07-27.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k China : dawn of a golden age, 200-750 AD. James C. Y. Watt, Prudence Oliver Harper, Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2004. p. 291. ISBN 1-58839-126-4. OCLC 55846475.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Benn, Charles D. (2002). Daily Life in Traditional China: The Tang Dynasty. Greenwood Press "Daily life through history" series (illustrated ed.). Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 106. ISBN 0313309558. ISSN 1080-4749.
  4. ^ 华, 梅 (2004). Chinese Clothing. Cultural China series. Hong Yu, 张蕾 (illustrated, reprint ed.). China Intercontinental Press. pp. 48, 55. ISBN 750850612X.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Benn, Charles D. (2004). China's Golden Age: Everyday Life in the Tang Dynasty (illustrated, reprint ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 106. ISBN 0195176650.
  6. ^ 臧, 迎春 (2003). 臧, 迎春 (ed.). 中国传统服饰. 臧迎春, 李竹润. 五洲传播出版社. ISBN 7508502795.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Yang, Shao-yun (2017). "Changing Clothes in Chang'an". China Review International. University of Hawai'i Press. 24 (4): 255–266. doi:10.1353/cri.2017.0064. JSTOR 26892132 – via JSTOR.
  8. ^ Watt, James C. Y. (2004). China: Dawn of a Golden Age, 200–750 AD (illustrated ed.). Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 183. ISBN 1588391264.
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