What do white wigs stand for for British judges and barristers

By Lisa Crawley

我們經常能在影視作品中看到，英國法庭上的法官和律師都戴著一頭白色卷發假發。在一些前英國殖民地，也可以看到這種具有不列顛特色的文化烙印。英國司法界人士為什么對假發情有獨鐘呢?這頂白色的假發是什么材質？造價如何？如果律師或法官不戴它出庭會怎樣呢?接下來我們將為你一一科普。

In England wigs remain an important part of formal courtroom attire for judges and barristers—the term there for lawyers.

Many of the judges and barristers who wear wigs in court say the headpiece—also known as a peruke—brings a sense of formality and solemnity to proceedings.

Like many uniforms,wigs are an emblem of anonymity,an attempt to distance the wearer from personal involvement and a way to visually draw on the supremacy of the law,says Kevin Newton,a Washington,D.C.—based lawyer who studied law at the University of London.Wigs are so much a part of British criminal courts that if a barrister doesn't wear a wig,it's seen as an insult to the court.

Barristers must wear a wig slightly frizzed at the crown,with horizontal curls on the sides and back.In addition,there are two long strips of hair that hang down below the hairline on the neck and sport a looped curl at each end.Different types of lawyers,though,have distinctions in the style of wig.

A judge's wig is similar,but more ornate.It's a full wig,from a slightly frizzed top that transitions into tight horizontal curls that range several inches below the shoulders.

在英國，假發一直是法官和出庭律師法庭制服的重要組成。

許多法官和出庭律師表示，戴上這種假發會給訴訟程序增加莊嚴肅穆的儀式感。

來自華盛頓的律師凱文·牛頓曾在倫敦法學院學習法律系。他表示，和其他制服一樣，假發是一種不露身份的象征，它試圖將佩戴者的個人情感與法庭分割開來，從視覺上塑造法律的至高無上性。假發在英國刑事法庭中意義重大，如果一個律師不戴假發，則會被視為對法庭的侮辱。

出庭律師佩戴的假發樣式必須是頭頂后部稍卷，兩側和后腦帶有水平卷曲。此外，脖子發際線下還要垂下兩縷長長的頭發，每縷末端也有一個環形卷曲。不同類型的律師，佩戴的假發風格也有所不同。

法官的假發樣式和律師的差不多，但更為華麗，是一頂全頭套假發，頂部微卷，向下逐漸變為濃密的水平卷曲，長度在肩膀以下幾英寸。

Most wigs are made of white horse hair,but as a wig yellows with age,it takes on a coveted patina that conveys experience.

Horse hair may not seem like a particularly precious material,but pair specialty hair with an age-old craft of styling,sewing and gluing,and the resulting wigs aren't cheap.A judge's full-length wig can cost more than$3,000,while the shorter ones worn by barristers cost more than$500.

Wigs may have fallen out of general men's fashion over the centuries,but when wigs first made their appearance in a courtroom,they were part and parcel of being a well-dressed professional.

In the 17thcentury,only the elite wore powdered wigs made of horsehair.Those who couldn't afford the elite garb but wanted to look the part wore wigs made of hair from goats,spooled cotton or human corpses.

Wigs began to catch on in the late 16thcentury when an increasing number of people in Europe were contracting the STD.Withoutwidespread treatmentwith antibiotics,people with syphilis were plagued by rashes,blindness,dementia,open sores and hair loss.The hair loss was particularly problematic in social circles.

Wigs,when not used to cover syphilis-related hair loss,were a big help for those who had lice.After all,it was much more difficult to treat and pick through the hair on one's head than it was to sanitize a wig.

Over time,wigs fell out of fashion with society as a whole.During the reign of England's King George III,from 1760 to 1820,wigs were worn by only a few—namely bishops,coachmen and those in the legal profession.And bishops were permitted to stop wearing them in the 1830s.But the courts kept wigs for hundreds of years more.

In 2007,though,new dress rules did away with barrister wigs—for the most part.Wigs were no longer required during family or civil court appearances,or when appearing before the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.Wigs,however,remain in use in criminal cases.

In the U.K.and Ireland,judges continued to wear wigs until 2011,when the practice was discontinued.In England,and other former English and British colonies—like Canada,for instance,whose provinces abandoned the wigs throughout the 19thand 20thcenturies,or Jamaica which removed the wigs in 2013—lawyers and judges now only wear wigs for ceremonies.

大多數假發都是由白色的馬毛制成，但隨著時間推移，假發會變黃，散發出代表著經驗老道的光澤。

馬毛似乎不算特別珍貴的材質，但將這些毛發用古老的工藝造型、縫紉、膠合，打造成假發并不便宜。一頂標準長度的法官假發售價超過3，000美元(約合人民幣2萬元)，而出庭律師佩戴的短假發也要花費500多美元(約合人民幣3，300元)。

在過去的幾個世紀里，假發已經從普通男士時尚中消失了。但當假發第一次出現在法庭上時，它是專業人士的得體穿著中必不可少的一部分。

在17世紀，只有社會精英才能佩戴馬毛制成的撲粉假發。而那些買不起又想要充樣子的人，只能戴山羊毛、棉花或死人毛發制成的假發。

假發在16世紀晚期開始流行。當時歐洲越來越多的人感染了性病，由于當時抗生素還沒有廣泛用于治療，感染者飽受皮疹、失明、癡呆、開放性潰瘍和脫發的折磨。而脫發的問題在社交圈中尤為嚴重。

除了掩蓋性病導致的脫發，假發對長虱子的人來說也有很大幫助。畢竟處理頭發上的虱子要比給假發消毒麻煩多了。

隨著時間的推移，假發不再流行于整個社會。1760～1820年，英國國王喬治三世在位期間，只有少數的主教、馬車夫和法律界人士佩戴假發。到19世紀30年代，主教獲準停止佩戴假發。而法庭則將這項傳統保留了數百年。

2007年的新著裝規定基本免去了出庭律師的假發，當律師在家事法庭、民事法庭或英國最高法院出庭時，不需要再佩戴假發。但在刑事案件中，需佩戴假發。

在英國和愛爾蘭，直到2011年法官佩戴假發的規定才取消。在英格蘭和其他英國的前殖民地，律師和法官只需在參加儀式時佩戴假發。例如，加拿大在19和20世紀就遺棄了這一傳統，而牙買加在2013年也取消了該規定。