When men wore earrings and women wore pants

I spent Monday afternoon last week researching clothing from the time period I'm writing in, that is 1st century B.C. mostly to the north of the Korean peninsula. The dudes' feathered hats came up again, but I went through more comprehensive treatments of fashion in that era that were not focused exclusively on noblemen's hats. One of the books I took copious notes on agrees with me that the feathers were definitely real bird feathers early on but that feather-shaped or deer ear-shaped decorations also came into use later on.

All the books that I took a look at on this subject seem to discuss the Xiongnu(1) clothing uncovered at the Noin-Ula burial site in Mongolia, pointing out the similarities to Korean clothing in the basic structure of articles like form-fitting pants, wraparound tunic bound with a belt, and outer coat. A red tunic found in Noin-Ula shows traces of being trimmed with fur, which is a great distinctive look I could use since the ancient connection between the Xiongnu and Koreans seems inescapable.

( More ancient Korean fashion, plus pictures! )