Stomacher

The stomacher (Hebrew: pethigil) is an article of female attire mentioned in Isaiah's catalogue of the luxuries that God will remove from the proud women of Zion as part of his judgment on Jerusalem (Isa. 3:24). The precise nature of the garment is uncertain: some identify it as a richly embroidered sash or girdle worn around the chest or waist, while the Greek Septuagint and Latin Vulgate suggest a fine garment of purple or gold embroidery. In any case it represents the elaborate finery of wealthy women in eighth-century Jerusalem.

Isaiah contrasts the stomacher with "a girding of sackcloth" — the mourning garb that will replace it when judgment comes. The passage (Isa. 3:16–26) is one of the most detailed descriptions of ancient women's clothing and ornamentation in the Old Testament, listing over twenty specific items of adornment, all of which God declares he will take away.