The gown—Festive dress—Outer garments—Under garments—Head-dress—Mode of wearing the hair—Ornaments—Buckles and fibulæ—Numerous jewels of gold.
The most important piece of clothing worn by women was the kyrtil (gown). It was made very wide, with a train, and was usually provided with long sleeves reaching to the wrists. It was fastened round the waist by a belt, often made of gold or silver, from which a bag was suspended for rings, ornaments, housewife’s keys, &c. Sometimes this dress was narrow at the waist, and had a close-fitting jacket. Over the kirtle was wore a kind of apron (blœja), which sometimes had fringe at the bottom.
The slœdur, mentioned in Rigsmál, was a festive dress for women as well as for men; it did not reach so high as to entirely cover the neck and bust; therefore a separate piece of clothing, called smokk (collar), was worn with it, and a dúk (neckerchief) was also wrapped round the neck. The neck and bust were frequently left bare, and ornamented with a necklace and other ornaments. A kind of shoulder ornament is also mentioned, under the name of dvergar.
And the housewife
Looked at her sleeves,
She smoothed the linen,
And plaited them,
She put up the head-dress;
A brooch was on her breast,
The dress-train was trailing,