Mughal clothing

What the dress was

Mughal clothing is the dress worn by people living under the Mughal Empire, a multi-faith, multi-ethnic state that lasted through the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Long before the Mughals reached the Indian subcontinent, many of the same garments were already in use there. What marked the style was expense and detail: muslin, silk, velvet and brocade, and patterns of dots, checks and waves. Dyes included cochineal and sulfates of iron, copper and antimony. Clothes were layered, and they changed with the weather, the court calendar and the wearer's rank. Men and women both wore a good deal of jewellery.

Men at court

A man's dress turned on the jama, a coat overlapping at the front that fell to the knee or lower, drawn in at the waist by a cummerbund and worn over paijama trousers. In Persian the word jama covers a robe, gown or coat. The yaktahi jama came from Persia and Central Asia, where it was worn long or short over pai-jama in an outfit called Bast Agag. Akbar changed the shape of the coat, taking out the slits, rounding the hem and giving the skirt more fullness. Courtiers wore the same coat whether they were Hindu or Muslim; Hindus fastened theirs on the left, Muslims on the right. His wardrobe also held the angrakha, the peshwaz and the takauchiya.

Turbans, caps and shoes

Headwear was varied. Akbar set the fashion for a turban wrapped straight on the head with no cap beneath, gathered tightly at the front and rising to a bulge at the back, kept in place by a band of different cloth. Caps came in many cuts: the chau-goshia of four joined segments, the domed qubbedar, and others called kashiti, dupalli, nukka dar and mandil, some embroidered and one of velvet. Women's headwear included silk Karakul and boqta hats trimmed with jewels, a feathered pin and veils. Shoes and slippers mostly turned up at the toe. The jhuti was the shoe most visitors to Akbar's court wore, and Lucknow was known for its footwear and for gold and silver embroidery.

Women's dress

In the early empire, women of the court lived in purdah and followed the dress of Khurasan and Persia. Under Babur and Humayun, a noblewoman's outfit began with wide, loose trousers, plain or striped, and a loose top tied at the neck or cut in a V. The yalek was a close-fitting vest reaching almost to the floor, buttoned down the front. When Rajput princesses entered the household in Akbar's reign, Indian dress came into court, and wives and consorts began to dress alike whatever their religion. Muslim women preferred trousers, Hindu women a skirt, and the peshwaz was worn over the top. Pearls and jewels trimmed the drawstrings.

Jewels and making

Jewellery was part of daily life for men, women and even the emperor's horse. Chronicles and paintings show armlets above the elbow, bracelets and pearl strings stacked at the wrist, rings, and ornaments set in the hair in the shape of a star, sun, moon or flower. A woman might own eight complete sets. Turban ornaments were different: only the emperor, his nearest kin and a few chosen people could wear them, and over time such pieces took the general name sarpech. Jahangir's portraits show a softer plume, weighed down by a large pearl; Shah Jahan's kalgi was built from gems set in gold over enamel. Jewellery-making, shoe-making and embroidery were skilled trades, and designs multiplied as the empire grew.

How Mughal clothing is kept

A man began with paijama trousers, drew the jama over them, and girded it with a waistband or cummerbund; a pagri turban finished the look, with shoes turning up at the toe for court. A woman's layers could include a tight bodice, a peshwaz above it, and trousers or a skirt below, with the front opening and drawstrings trimmed in gold, pearls and jewels. In the zenana an outfit might be worn once and then given away. Jewellery went on last: armlets, bracelets, rings, ear and nose pieces, and for the emperor a jewelled turban ornament.

When and where

Mughal dress belongs to the years of the empire, the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, and many of its parts were worn in the subcontinent for centuries before that. It is not tied to one date or season. Clothes changed with the day, the court calendar and the weather, and in the zenana several changes might happen in a single day.

It was worn across the Mughal Empire, whose heartland lay in the Indian subcontinent. Lucknow was noted in the period for shoes and for embroidery worked in gold and silver. Muslim and Hindu wearers at court shared the same garments with small differences, and Rajput influence grew as princesses joined the imperial household.

What Mughal clothing means

Cloth signalled standing. Fine cotton, silk, wool, velvet and brocade were for those who could afford them, and the thinnest garments might weigh less than an ounce. Jewels marked rank as well as beauty, and one ornament, the jewelled turban piece, belonged to the emperor, his close kin and a chosen few of his household. The empire's dress also shows a slow turn from Central Asian custom toward Indian life, as Akbar took up Indian garments and fabrics.

Questions people ask about Mughal clothing

See also

Dhaka topiA patterned cotton cap worn across Nepal as part of the national dressTurbanCloth wound around the head, worn for faith, rank, shade and identitySherwaniA long buttoned coat for men, worn at weddings and state occasions in South AsiaPutteeA cloth leg wrap worn by soldiers, from the Himalayas to the armies of two world wars

Good reading and sources

• Mughal clothing on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-12.