The Antiquities of Orissa v1.c10.137.3

v1.c10.137.3

There are some loose curls on the left temple, the counterparts of which are not to be seen on the opposite side. The style shewn in No. 99 was common enough. Its great peculiarity is, that the chignon, instead of being placed behind the head, is brought to the left side, and made to rest on the shoulder. It is tied across by a jewelled band having a pendant star on each side. A fringe of short hair covers the upper part of the forehead, and upon it is set a triangular tiara of jewels. In the *Ṛgveda* the descendants of Vaśiṣṭha are described as wearing their chignons sideways, but in their case the right side was preferred.⁸⁴ In the present day many Europeans must have noticed Madrasi *āyāhs* with their coil of hair on the left side, and the dancing girls of Oudh, until very recently, patronised the same fashion. Illustration No. 102 exhibits a modification of this style. The hair in it is parted into two coils, and placed on the two sides, leaving the occiput flat. This is common both to men and women. In Illustration No. 103, the true chignon disappears, and is replaced by a fantastic cone curling and twisting upwards behind the head; and the form is further modified in No. 100, in which the hair is tied by a jewelled band two or three inches from the back of the head, and then braided into an enormous ball about two-thirds the size of the head.