Why Did Ancient Romans Have Curly Hair? The Surprising Truth

Genetics: the biggest piece of the puzzle

Let’s get this straight: not all ancient Romans had curly hair. But a lot did — and when you look at Roman busts and sculptures, you’ll see ringlets, waves, coils… like, everywhere. Why?

Mediterranean DNA and its impact

The Roman Empire was centered in the Italian Peninsula — and people in that region (Southern Europe, North Africa, parts of the Levant) tend to have diverse hair textures, from pin-straight to super curly. Genetics plays a massive role here. Curly hair is often dominant in many Mediterranean populations due to a mix of African, Semitic, and Indo-European ancestral lines. So, yeah, curly hair was pretty common just naturally.

And it's not just art. Ancient Roman writers, like Suetonius and Tacitus, sometimes made little digs about someone's hair — like calling out foreign enemies for being blond or unusually straight-haired. So curly was kind of "normal" Roman.

Hairstyles and beauty trends in ancient Rome

Curly hair wasn’t just inherited — sometimes it was totally styled.

The curling iron... in ancient Rome?

Yup. The calamistrum was a legit curling iron — a bronze or iron rod heated in the fire, used mainly by women to style their hair into curls. Slaves would carefully curl their mistress's hair for hours. Honestly, it sounds kinda painful, but hey, fashion is fashion.

Especially during the Flavian era (late 1st century CE), noblewomen rocked insanely elaborate curly hairstyles — big, towering buns full of ringlets. Think of it like the Roman version of a red carpet look.

So sometimes what looks like "curly hair" in busts wasn’t natural at all — it was the look.

Men and curls? Oh yeah.

Men, too, were into the curly aesthetic. Many emperors are shown with stylized curls in statues — think of Hadrian or Marcus Aurelius. Though there's debate whether that was idealization (like, "let’s make him look divine") or reality. Probably a bit of both.

Influence from conquered regions

Rome wasn’t just Italians, obviously. The empire was multi-ethnic as hell, and that meant tons of hair textures.

African and Eastern influences

People from Egypt, Carthage, Gaul, Judea, and beyond became Roman citizens, senators, soldiers. That added to the hair diversity — and sometimes Roman art tried to reflect that (though often idealized).

There’s even evidence of Roman women wearing wigs made from the hair of captured slaves — especially from Germanic women (blond wigs) or African women (tight curls). Kinda gross? Yeah. But historically true.

So not every curl was Roman-born. Some were... borrowed.

Artistic exaggeration and symbolism

This one’s interesting. Roman portraiture was often more about status and identity than literal realism.

Curls = youth, strength, beauty?

In sculpture, curly hair often symbolized vitality, virility, or power. That’s why so many emperors — even in old age — are shown with thick, curly locks. Even if they were bald IRL (looking at you, Caesar).

Also, let’s not forget that the Romans were obsessed with Greek culture. And Greek statues? Full of curly-haired gods. So curls became part of the whole divine, heroic vibe.

Basically: If you were immortalized in marble, your hair probably got an upgrade.

Final thoughts: it’s complicated (like curls themselves)

So... why did ancient Romans have curly hair?

• Genetics, for sure — Mediterranean ancestry brings textured hair.

• Styling, both fashion-driven and symbolic.

• Cultural mixing, from all over the empire.

• And a bit of artistic flattery, let’s be honest.

It’s a blend, just like the Roman people themselves. Whether by birth or by bronze curling rod, those iconic curls are part of the legacy they left behind. Funny how a hairstyle can carry so much history, right?

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