The Floppy Hats of Urartu

Urartu, a rival kingdom to Assyria in the early 1st millennium BCE, is frequently mentioned and depicted in Neo-Assyrian sources. Among the visual depictions, one curious feature stands out: Urartian figures are often shown wearing distinctive “floppy” hats. These soft, conical caps with drooping peaks appear in Assyrian palace reliefs and have become an identifying symbol of Urartian attire. Below, I explore the evidence and interpretations of these Urartian floppy hats – from archaeological finds and artistic renderings to their wearers, cultural meaning, and comparisons with other headgear of the era.

1. Assyrian Depictions of the Floppy Hats

In the Neo-Assyrian palace art (9th–7th centuries BC), Urartian figures are often portrayed with a unique style of headgear. For example, carvings from Sennacherib’s palace at Nineveh depict Urartian emissaries wearing conical caps with drooping, floppy tops. These caps feature multiple hanging ribbons or tails and a soft, rounded peak. A description by A.H. Layard of one such relief notes that Urartian captives or envoys: “wore a kind of conical cap, to which were attached two or more tails or ribands”, along with other distinctive garments. In these stone panels, the cap’s top appears to flop to one side under its own weight, giving rise to the “floppy” characterization.

No fabric hats from Urartu have survived due to the perishable nature of textiles, but archaeological discoveries of metal helmets provide insight into the distinction between battle gear and everyday attire. Urartian bronze helmets from the 8th century BCE are tall and pointed, designed specifically for warfare. These helmets, often adorned with depictions of deities like Haldi or intricate mythical animal motifs, indicate that Urartian warriors used formal, conical metal headgear for protection in combat. In contrast, the soft, floppy caps depicted in Assyrian art likely represented non-military attire, worn in daily life or ceremonial contexts. The frequent depiction of these cloth hats in Assyrian reliefs suggests they were a distinctive and recognizable element of Urartian identity.

2. The Design and Function of the Urartian Cap

Naturally, we must consider that ancient depictions of these hats were influenced by the artistic conventions of the time. However, by closely examining Assyrian reliefs, we can attempt a reasonable reconstruction of their design. Based on these images, one could infer that these hats featured adjustable ear covers that could be folded out, tucked behind the head, or secured in the front. The peak of the hat appears to have been made of a soft material, allowing it to bend or flop to the sides, giving it a distinctive, flexible shape.

Practically, the floppy hats were likely made of felt or wool, materials commonly used for headgear in the ancient Near East. Urartu was a highland kingdom (centered in the mountains of Armenia/Anatolia), where a warm, thick hat with ear and neck coverings would be very useful protection against cold weather.

​Assyrian descriptions do not specify the material, but the way the hat droops in carvings suggests a flexible fabric (felted wool or heavy cloth) rather than stiff leather. The construction may have been similar to the later Median and Persian caps, known as the kyrbasia, which had long flaps that could be tied or let hang​. Its floppiness indicates no internal frame (unlike a helmet or a stiff crown).

The Urartian cap likely had an inner snug fit on the head and an upper section that was taller and could flop over. The “tails” could be the ends of a scarf-like extension or simply decorative streamers sewn to the tip of the cap. Beyond providing warmth, the design served practical functions: the long flaps or ribbons could protect the neck and ears from harsh weather or be tied under the chin to secure the hat against strong winds.

The upturned toes of Urartian boots, distinct from Assyrian footwear, suggest a design suited for horseback riding or traversing rugged mountainous terrain. Likewise, the floppy hat was likely an integral part of a highland riding outfit, combining practicality with cultural identity. It provided warmth and shade, making it functional for the region’s climate, while its distinctive shape became a recognizable symbol of Urartian tradition.

UPDATE: Urartian Fresco from Erebuni Confirms Floppy Hat Depictions

A friend recently made me aware of a fresco at the Erebuni Museum, which depicts an Urartian man wearing the distinctive floppy hat seen in Assyrian reliefs. The earflaps are down, and a white band wraps around the head, suggesting a functional or decorative feature.

These frescoes, unearthed during excavations at the Erebuni Fortress, illustrate various aspects of Urartian life, from royalty and warriors to ordinary farmers, offering invaluable insights into their clothing and daily existence. This particular fresco, from King Argishti I’s reign (782 BCE), provides direct visual confirmation that this style of headgear was part of Urartian attire. Its presence in official palace artwork reinforces its cultural significance, further strengthening the connection between Urartian and early Armenian dress traditions.

3. Who Wore the Floppy Hat?

Assyrian iconography indicates that Urartian elites and envoys were the ones most often depicted with the floppy hats. In the victory procession relief from Nineveh (Southwest Palace, Room XXXIII), the individuals wearing these caps are identified by scholars as ambassadors or high-ranking representatives of Urartu​. Their presence in tribute or victory scenes – rather than battle scenes – suggests they are dignitaries, not ordinary soldiers. The Urartian envoys at Nineveh, for instance, likely represent nobles or officials sent by the Urartian king, and the distinctive hats mark their identity. This implies that the floppy cap was a part of formal or court attire in Urartian society, denoting a person of status (someone entrusted with diplomatic missions).

There is little evidence to suggest that common soldiers wore floppy caps in battle. Instead, excavations of Urartian fortresses and burials have uncovered bronze war helmets, confirming that Urartian military personnel relied on proper protective headgear. A mid-9th century BCE Assyrian bronze gate relief from Balawat, depicting a campaign against Urartu, shows captured Urartian soldiers and seized armor, emphasizing their use of helmets rather than soft caps. This suggests that the floppy hat was not standard military gear but was instead worn in non-combat settings, likely by officials or dignitaries.

Modern scholars have continued to study these representations to understand Urartian culture. The consensus is that the Assyrians deliberately portrayed Urartians with this hat to emphasize their foreign, northern origin and possibly to caricature them. Some researchers have noted that in the relief of the Urartian envoys, the sculptor gave them exaggerated facial features (such as prominent noses and cheekbones) along with the floppy caps, as if to accentuate ethnic difference​.

From a cultural perspective, the floppy hat of Urartu can be seen as symbolizing the highland lifestyle of the Urartian people. Urartu was often in conflict with Assyria, and though they were enemies, the Assyrians acknowledged Urartu’s distinct customs. The hat, as part of traditional dress, might have also carried meaning within Urartu itself – perhaps denoting pride in their horse-riding warrior culture.

Actual Urartian nobility may have had somewhat firmer hats on occasion, or even different headgear for different ranks. Yet the consistent depiction of a floppy-topped cap in multiple Assyrian artworks (from Sargon II’s reign through Sennacherib’s) shows it was a persistent image associated with Urartu​.

4. Origins and Continuity of the Urartian Floppy Hat

In the Iron Age Near East, many cultures developed distinctive headgear, and the Urartian floppy hat stood out as a distinctive feature of its era. Assyrians primarily wore metal helmets or simple caps, making the Urartian floppy hat appear exotic and distinct in their reliefs. Babylonians and Elamites typically used turbans, headbands, or soft hoods, contrasting with the pointed Urartian cap. Syro-Hittite and Levantine states featured fez-like caps or simple cloth wraps, with no clear parallels to the floppy Urartian hat.

It was only later, with the rise of the Achaemenid Empire, that the Medes and Persians adopted) the kyrbasia. However, similar conical hats were already worn by Anatolian cultures, such as the Phrygians, who rose to prominence in the 8th century BCE. Over time, this style became widely recognized in classical Western literature as the Phrygian cap. Around 690 BCE, Phrygia was invaded by the Cimmerians, later falling under Lydian rule before ultimately being incorporated into the Persian Empire under Cyrus the Great.

In practical terms, scholars interpret the construction of the hat as typical of Iron Age Anatolia. According to Encyclopedia Iranica, this hat was not native to Iran but originated in regions like Urartu and Phrygia:

By Achaemenid times, the floppy conical cap had spread widely: Median and Persian cavalry wore a version of it, Scythian nomads had similar pointed hoods, and it even shows up on the famed Alexander Sarcophagus depicting Persians in battle.

It appears that this type of headgear was widely used among horse-riding cultures such as the Armenians and other groups of the Near East, as well as in the mountainous regions of the Caucasus and the northern steppes, where pastoralist and equestrian societies thrived and played a key role in spreading Indo-European languages across Europe and Asia.

The exact origins of this headgear remain uncertain, but Armenia has long been associated with this style. This connection challenges some interpretations that separate Urartu from Armenia, a distinction that ancient sources did not make. The Behistun inscriptions, for example, show that Urartu and Armenia were used interchangeably in antiquity. The Akkadian term Urartu was later replaced by the Persian Armenia after the fall of the Assyrian Empire, reinforcing the idea that Urartu was an Armenian kingdom. I’ve discussed this subject in more detail in my 5 part articles on “Who were the Urartians“.

To better understand the design of the Urartian hats, we can examine early depictions of Armenians in antiquity. Since Armenians are traditionally regarded as the descendants of the Urartians, the continuity of a similar hat style in later iconography is unsurprising. Here are some notable examples:

4.1 The Armenian Tribute Bearers at Persepolis

At Persepolis, the Achaemenid palace reliefs display tribute bearers from various subject peoples. Among these, figures identified as Armenian (or from regions corresponding to later Armenian territories) are shown wearing headgear that resembles the floppy, conical style of the Urartian cap. Although the artistic conventions of the reliefs are standardized, the distinct shape of the cap helps set these figures apart as representatives of a highland, northern people—echoing the visual vocabulary the Assyrians had developed for Urartu.

It is no coincidence that the Armenian tribute bearers are depicted presenting a horse to the Persian king. Armenia has long been renowned for producing some of the finest horses in the region, with its lands historically praised for their exceptional pastures. The Armenian tradition of horse breeding and riding has deep historical roots, making the Urartian attire seen in Assyrian depictions particularly fitting within this equestrian culture. I have explored the significance of horse domestication in Armenia in several previous articles, including “Armenia: Land of the Horses.”

4.2 The Orontid Dynasty and Coinage

Later on, during the Orontid period (6th century BC–2nd century BC), coins minted under this Armenian dynasty (which at times served as satraps under the Persian Empire) occasionally depict the ruler’s headgear. Although these coins employ Hellenistic and Persian artistic influences, some images recall the earlier, softer, and more conical forms reminiscent of the Urartian floppy hat. The presence of such headgear on coins suggests that it functioned as a symbol of continuity—a visual reference to an ancient, native tradition.

4.3 Ancient Greek Descriptions of Armenians

Greek historians explicitly note this continuity – Herodotus in the 5th century BCE wrote that Armenians in the Achaemenid army were “armed like the Phrygians”​ implying they wore the same style of clothing. In other words, the classic “Phrygian cap” of antiquity (a soft cone with a forward flop) was part of Armenian dress from an early date.

4.4 The Armenian Tiara

The crowns of Armenia were highly stylised royal kyrbasias, known in Greek as the tiara orthé. Greek sources, particularly Xenophon, emphasize that only the Great King had the right to wear the tiara in its upright form, reinforcing its role as a visual marker of royal authority. This distinction suggests that the tiara was not merely a practical garment but a significant political and ideological symbol. In some cases the traditional earflaps were narrowed into long strips and wound around the rim of the hat. Read more: on the Armenian Tiara.

4.5 Roman sources

Roman sources likewise associated this headgear with Armenians: the Roman playwright Plautus described the “tiara” as a high-crowned head-dress covering the ears, worn especially by the Armenians. On Roman coins and art, the “Armenian tiara” – essentially a stiffened, ornamented version of the conical cap – served as a symbol of the Armenian kingdom​. Roman coins often illustrated Armenia by this tiara. So much so that it became one of the main identifiable symbols of Armenia. When Romans conquered the Armenian lands they often depicted Armenian soldiers and kings wearing this type of headgear.

5. Evolution of the Headgear

Over time, similar styles of pointed headgear spread across the Caucasus and the Black Sea region, appearing among the Cherkess, Pontic Greeks, Laz people, and Hamshen Armenians.

The Armenian word for this head-covering, խոյր (Khoyr), appears in 5th-century texts, including Bible translations, referring to tiaras or significant headgear. In Modern Armenian, it became խույր (xuyr), with the spelling adjusted in reformed orthography. The term, though somewhat archaic, still means “ornamental headgear” and signifies “a head covering of rank or honor.”

Some linguists link the term to the Parthian word xōḍ or xōẟ, meaning “helmet,” which is derived from Old Persian xawdaH-, meaning “cap” or “hood.” The Proto-Germanic word hōdaz (meaning “hood”) is related to the Iranian xawdaH; this connection is well-documented. Wiktionary notes that these terms are cognates, with Proto-Iranian xawdaH (meaning “hat”) sharing roots with Proto-Indo-European kadʰ- (meaning “to cover”). As a result, խույր (xuyr) can be traced back to a very ancient concept: a protective covering for the head, a notion echoed in many Indo-European languages.

In addition to the native khuyr, Armenian literature also borrowed foreign terms for the same type of headgear. One such word is կիդար (kidar, or in some texts կեդար, kendar/kindar), which comes from Greek kidaris (κίδαρις), referring to the tall pointed hat of nobles, often translated as “tiara” or “cidaris.” It’s also interesting to note that Armenian monastic headgear maintained the conical shape. The black pointed hoods (called վեղար or veghar, from Latin vēlārium) worn by Armenian clergy since medieval times resemble the ancient hoods worn by Armenian ancestors. The term veghar simply means a hood, not specifically a hat. Under Ottoman influence, the Turkic term bashlyk (or its Armenian adaptation balshik) eventually replaced the native names for these hats.

Conclusion

These findings support the idea that the distinctive headgear styles seen in Persian, Median, and even Phrygian contexts have deeper roots in earlier Anatolian and Armenian Highland traditions. Since Urartu was a major cultural and political force in the Near East before the rise of the Medes and Persians, it is likely that elements of Urartian dress—including its floppy hats—influenced the later styles worn by Achaemenid elites and warriors. Additionally, this type of headdress aligns with the broader tradition of practical highland attire, of which Urartian dress was an early example.

The Urartian floppy hat was more than just an article of clothing; it was a symbol of continuity, identity, and tradition in the Armenian Highlands. From the ambasadors of Urartu, the tribute bearers of Persepolis to the royal portraits on Armenian coinage, this distinctive headgear linked generations of Armenian rulers, warriors, and commoners. While its exact origins remain to be discovered, its association with Armenia and its predecessors is clear.