Twilight of the Sultanate c17.s6.1

c17.s6.1

As noted earlier, the standards of culture of a people are best reflected in the life of the cities. In the cities were to be seen costumes and dresses of various kinds. The Sultan, the nobles, all the inmates of the harem, and even the servants wore clothes of good quality.⁷³ The dress of the Sultan and the *élite* consisted of a *Kulāh* or head-dress, a tunic worked in brocade and long drawers. On official occasions the Sultans wore a four-cornered head-dress (embroidered with gold thread and studded with jewels), long Tartaric gowns and Qabā—(which for winter was stuffed with cotton and was called Dagla)⁷⁴ all buckled in the middle of the body.⁷⁵ The Hindu aristocracy dressed like the Muslim aristocracy,⁷⁶ except that in place of *Kulāh* they used a turban, and in place of long drawers they wore *dhoti* trimmed with gold lace. The Muslims all over the country dressed heavily but the Hindus were scantily dressed. "They cannot wear more clothing," says Nicolo Conti, "on account of the great heat, and for the same reason only wear Sandals, with purple and golden ties, as we see in ancient statues."⁷⁷ The south Indian kings and nobles also wore long hair. "Some tie their hair at the back of their head with a silken cord, and let it flow over their shoulders. . . ." but they shaved their beards. "The men resemble Europeans in stature and the duration of their lives".⁷⁸