In this blog post, I will examine the characteristics of ancient Egyptian costumes as depicted in the animated film “The Prince of Egypt,” the ways in which they are portrayed, and their significance from the perspective of the history of costume.

The Film and My Personal Background

I was first introduced to Egyptian civilization in elementary school, and it rekindled my interest through a “History of Western Costume” course I took in college. Wanting to see the clothing of ancient Egypt—which I had previously only seen in books and illustrations—more vividly, I searched for a movie and ended up rewatching the animated film ‘The Prince of Egypt’, which had left a deep impression on me years ago. Despite being a children’s animated film, the depiction of clothing—which reflected the historical and sociocultural context—seemed far more accurate than I had expected; therefore, this article is a review that focuses on those depictions from the perspective of the history of costume.

A Brief Synopsis and Interest in Costume

The film is set in an era when the Pharaoh of Egypt ordered the killing of all Hebrew baby boys. The protagonist, Moses, is placed in a basket by his mother and set adrift on the Nile as a child; he is later discovered by the queen and raised as a prince in the palace. After learning that he is Hebrew, Moses, following a period of turmoil, leaves Egypt to join the Hebrew people, and from that point on, the conflict between the common people and the ruling class intensifies. While the film contains many religious themes, I naturally found myself paying closer attention to the characters’ clothing and accessories.

Workers’ Attire: The Loincloth and Class Distinctions

Early in the film, in a scene where the overseer (a character playing the role of a supervisor) supervises workers as they labor under the scorching desert sun, the loincloth (a rectangular piece of cloth wrapped around the waist) first appears. The loincloth was the most basic form of clothing in ancient Egypt and was primarily worn during labor or other physically active situations. The film depicted this basic form differently according to social class: while the laborers wore short versions that reached above the knees, the character representing the supervisor wore a loincloth that extended well below the knees, highlighting the difference in status.
In ancient Egypt, fabric was a scarce resource, and the higher one’s social status, the more fabric and the longer the garments one could wear; thus, there was a custom of revealing one’s status through the length and fullness of the garment, even if the basic form remained the same. The film’s depiction of clothing reflects this point relatively faithfully, visualizing the strict social hierarchy through nothing more than differences in the length of simple waist skirts.

Royal Attire and Accessories

The attire of the king and queen is distinctly different from that of the common people. In the film, the queen wears a long, strapless gown—a “sheath dress”—adorned with jewels and beads to display her class and wealth. The king primarily wears a type of cloak (haik) symbolizing authority and wraps an ornament similar to a shendot around his waist to indicate his status. This style bears many similarities to ancient artifacts.
Jewelry served not only as simple decoration but also carried magical significance; in the film, the decorations on the crown, the diadem, and the representation of the uraeus (cobra) were recreated by borrowing these original symbols. The queen’s uraeus symbolizes the “rising woman,” while the king’s falcon motif is a traditional symbol of valor and authority. Additionally, the film effectively portrays how the king and princes shave their heads or wear wigs, and how the pharaoh wears a false beard to convey authority and maturity.

Makeup and Physical Appearance

One particularly striking aspect of the film was the depiction of makeup. In reality, ancient Egyptians applied kohl-like makeup along the inner rim of their eyes to protect them from the intense sunlight and prevent eye diseases; the film similarly uses a similar eyeliner style to emphasize the characters’ eyes, effectively capturing the period’s atmosphere. This effectively conveys that such makeup was not merely an aesthetic device but a practical element rooted in their way of life and environment.

The Limitations of Animation and Its Achievements

Due to the nature of animation as a medium, the film has limitations in depicting the texture of materials, fine wrinkles, and drapery. For example, the loincloths worn by the laborers and the director were likely made primarily of breathable linen in reality, while the queen’s sheath dress was likely crafted from thick or voluminous linen or wool to capture the wrinkles and volume. While the loincloths of the upper classes were long, voluminous, and heavily pleated, those of the lower classes were simple and short; it is difficult for animation to perfectly reproduce these three-dimensional and textural differences.
Nevertheless, considering its purpose as a children’s animated film, the movie conveyed the characteristics of the era more clearly and intuitively than expected. Although detailed textures and the feel of the materials were omitted, it is commendable that the film enabled the audience to immediately discern social status and roles through key elements such as shape, length, embellishments, and symbols.

The Film’s Value as an Extension of Costume History Studies

Watching the film again with the knowledge gained from class and textbooks allowed me to discover details that I would have missed if I had relied solely on books or photographs of artifacts. As a medium that reinterprets historical materials from a modern perspective, film serves as a valuable reference for those studying the history of costume.
From the perspective of someone studying fashion design, the history of costume is essential knowledge for reinterpreting the design language of the past into contemporary designs. Therefore, the process of frequently engaging with and comparing and analyzing not only books and historical materials but also mass media such as films broadens both one’s design sensibility and historical understanding.