People are only just realising why winter hats have pom-poms on them and the long thousand plus year history behind the winter accessory.
The fluffy fabrics weren’t always for decorative purposes, but people are only recently learning what they were originally for.
Some believe the bobbles have been worn on clothing since the Viking era from 793AD-1066 before the Magna Carta was written.
The mythological god Freyr had been depicted with head gear that itself had a pom-pom on.
It’s seen on the statuette found in Södermanland, Sweden, in 1904.
In some European countries, bobble hats were also used to define rank.
Clergymen wore caps called birettas in Rome, and they had different coloured pom-poms on to indicate which job they did.
Similarly, soldiers like those in the Scottish Highland regiments and Napoleon’s infantry wore wooly bobbles on their uniform.
As well as keeping soldiers warm, they also denoted which regiment the troops belonged to.
For the sailors as well, it is thought to have protected their heads in tight spaces from low-ceilings.
Then during the Depression, pom-poms became more mainstream.
Some also believe that celebrities like The Monkees’ Michael Nesmith helped to popularise the cozy hat.
Nesmith wore it during their TV shows.
So there you have it, that’s the long historied story of the pom-poms on top of your kid’s winter hat.
From viking ships and mythological gods, to the religious headwear in Rome and Napoleonic battlefields, the pom-pom has been around the world.
