5,000-year-old Egyptian Tarkhan dress confirmed as world's oldest

Garment that was excavated in Egypt more than 100 years ago has been confirmed to be about 5,500 years old.

Citing the latest issue of the archaeology journal Antiquity, the Daily Mail reported Friday that radiocarbon dating of the garment discovered at an ancient Egyptian tomb in 1912-1913 have confirmed to be made sometime between 3482 B.C. and 3102 B.C, which is the oldest among existing woven clothing.

Alice Stevenson, curator at the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology at University College London, published the finding in the journal. "Few pieces of early clothing, which was made from plant fibers or animal skins, escaped disintegration. Textiles recovered from archaeological sites are generally no older than 2,000 years," he said.

Design of the garment is astonishingly modern. Unlike other Egyptian clothing in the form of large clothes that are simply draped or wrapped on the entire body, the garment is designed to feature V-neck, and pleated sleeves and bodice. The original is believed to have been a floor-length dress.

“Such fine detail could only have been turned out by a specialized craftsperson. And such people arise only in a prosperous and hierarchical society," the online edition of National Geographic said. "Creases at the elbows and armpits also hint that someone once wore the dress; it wasn’t just ceremonial.”

The garment was originally discovered at the Tarkhan tomb in south of Cairo, but did not draw much attention amidst a pile of worn-out textiles. Researchers only discovered the value of the garment due to its unusual design after it was sent to the Victoria & Albert Museum in London in 1977.

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