Where did the invisibility cap come from?

Natalya Kochetkova

Nov 09 2025

Gateway to Russia (Photo: Westend61/Getty Images, AI/chatgpt) / Getty Images

The idea of a magical piece of clothing granting a human invisibility had been widespread throughout the world. Whether it’s a cloak or cape, a ring or hat, it can be found in European cultures (Ancient Greece, Scandinavian mythology), in Asian cultures (India, China, Japan) and even in North American cultures, including the Omaha and Zuni Indian tribes. And Russian folklore is no exception.

A headdress that makes the protagonist invisible is an important and common attribute of Russian fairy tales. It appears in ‘Marya Morevna’, some versions of ‘The Frog Princess’, ‘Ivan Tsarevich and the Gray Wolf’, ‘The Tale of Vasilisa the Wise’ and several others.

The invisibility cap is more than just a magical object that assists the hero's journey to achieving his goal. It makes him invisible, essentially imbuing him with the properties of a spirit, a ghost, a being from the world of the dead. This is why folklorists, particularly Vladimir Propp, describe the hat as an object belonging to the other world or, in common cultural speak, the underworld realm of Hades. So, the protagonist who puts it on temporarily ceases to be “alive” and passes into the world of the dead.