peploses

Noun

peplos (plural peploi or peploses)

1. (historical) An Ancient Greek garment, worn by women, 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.
   • An obvious question arises: what on earth can Herakles do with a peplos? Throughout Greek tradition, the peplos ("piece of cloth, veil, dress") is a woman's garment, and sometimes a barbarian's garment—no contradiction, as far as a Greek is concerned.1990, David Martin Halperin, John J. Winkler, Froma I. Zeitlin, eds, Before Sexuality: The Construction of Erotic Experience in the Ancient Greek World