After reading 1 Corinthians 11 for the first time, I was convicted to wear a head covering. But I had never seen anyone do it. In my congregation at the time, which consisted of 1,200 members, no one had ever mentioned head covering. But when I read the passage, it was clear to me that Paul was instructing all the churches everywhere to practice head covering, including the church I was currently attending. So, why was no one doing it?
“Well, that’s because in Corinth, in the first century, if a woman went around without a head covering then that meant that she was a prostitute.”
After many responses like this, I came to the conclusion that if Paul is exhorting his first century sisters to wear head coverings so they wouldn’t be mistaken for prostitutes, then there must be some evidence that proves the signifying feature of Corinthian prostitutes was their uncovered heads. All I had to do was find it.
To be honest, I wasn’t looking for a reason to wear a head covering — I was looking for a reason not to. I was content to go along with the status quo, but something continued to nag at me.
I realized I would not be satisfied until I saw the evidence of bare-headed Corinthian prostitutes for myself. But after searching high and low, every attempt came up empty. The truth is, the Corinthian prostitute theory — which implies that a woman’s uncovered head was a sign of prostitution — is a myth with no factual support.
Where Did This Theory Come From?
One possible explanation for this theory comes from ancient Corinth’s reputation as a hub of licentious activity with a temple to the Greek goddess Aphrodite that allegedly employed more than a thousand prostitutes.
In his article on Roman portraiture and head covering, Dr. David W. J. Gill writes:
Some have taken the urge for women to wear veils as Paul ensuring that they were not mistaken for prostitutes, or “hetairai.” Part of the reason for this view lies in the interpretation of Corinth as a “sex-obsessed” city with prostitutes freely roaming the street.
“The Importance of Roman Portraiture for Head-Coverings in 1 Corinthians 11:2-16” Dr. David W. J. Gill
But at the time of Paul’s writing, the temple of Aphrodite no longer employed prostitutes. In fact, the temple had been destroyed 200 years earlier. 1 In Paul’s day, Corinth was a Roman colony that offered the same carnal temptations as any other metropolitan city, but it was not home to Grecian temple prostitutes.
Errant Bible Commentary
Ancient history aside, the most likely origin of this theory comes from false information originally penned by 19th century English theologian Adam Clarke.
In his book “Commentary on the Bible,” Clarke erroneously makes the following comment:
“…it was a custom, both among the Greeks and Romans, and among the Jews an express law, that no woman should be seen abroad without a veil. This was, and is, a common custom through all the east, and none but public prostitutes go without veils.”
This claim made by Clarke is not supported by historical evidence, which depicts to the contrary. What the evidence actually shows is that it was common for upstanding Corinthian women during Paul’s time to be seen in public without head coverings. Gill also writes:
“Public marble portraits of women at Corinth, presumably members of wealthy and prestigious families are most frequently shown bare-headed. This would suggest that it was socially acceptable in a Roman colony for women to be seen bare-headed in public.”
Clarke’s incorrect information is damaging not only because it is untrue, but because it has been repeated by other Bible commentaries as if it were true. Most Christians today don’t think they’d need to fact check their Bible commentaries, but it is necessary for a clear understanding of Scripture.
What Does Scripture Say?
The truth is, there isn’t any evidence – biblical or otherwise – that indicates Corinthian prostitutes as being the reason why Paul instructs Christian women to wear head coverings. In fact, Paul himself makes no mention of prostitutes.
The evidence found in scripture does not point to reasons why Christian women should not wear head coverings today but why we should wear them, and is not based on what Paul does not say but on what he does say, which is that women should wear head coverings: due to creation order (1 Cor. 11:3-5), because of the angels (1 Cor. 11:10), and nature itself (1 Cor. 11:12-14) — all reasons not tied to first century cultural practices, such as prostitution, but to universal Biblical truths.
- Dr. David W. J. Gill (PhD, University of Oxford), “The Importance of Roman Portraiture for Head-Coverings in 1 Corinthians 11:2–16”, Tyndale Bulletin 41.2Dr. david W. J. Gill (PhD, University of Oxford): The 1,000 “hetairai” linked to the cult of Aphrodite, and the corresponding notoriety of Corinth, belong to the hellenistic city swept away by Mummius in 146 BC.
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