Expectations vs. Reality: History and the Outfits of Hurrem Sultan

The outfits Hurrem Sultan wore in the show Magnificent Century are not exactly how women dressed historically. Hurrem Sultan never sat for a painting, so all the imagery we have of her is based on diplomatic accounts of Europeans, mostly Venetians, who visited the Ottoman court of Suleyman the Magnificent. Here is the livestream where I discussed harem Ottoman fashion with Aya Katz:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbjYBMHt-cg&t=1469s

Hurrem lived in Ruthenia, which is in modern-day Ukraine, and was born somewhere around 1506. In her early teens, she was abducted from her home in a Tartar raid and sold into slavery. She eventually ended up in the harem of the Turkish sultan Sulyman the Magnificent, who reigned between 1520-1566.

Suleyman loved Hurrem so much that he eventually freed her from slavery and married her, which was breaking with the 100-year long tradition of sultans only having children with their concubines. In the show, Magnificent Century Hurrem and other characters wear very beautiful dresses, but these do not seem to be based exactly on how royal women of the time dressed.

From what little we do know since the harem life was secret and had scant documentation, most likely harem women wore şalvar (loose trousers), a transparent long gömlek (chemise), and an ankle-length purple entari (outer robe) with the ends tucked up. In cold weather, elite women wore fur-lined yeleks (jacket), which was a symbol of their higher status.