The earliest iteration of the Horse-face skirt can be traced back to the Song and Liao dynasties. However, its style, color, fabric, and patterns experienced several changes over the dynasties.
During the Song dynasty, the Horse-face skirt first appeared, possibly influenced by the attire of China's nomadic neighbors. There are two forms of early Horse-face skirt’s prototype found in the Tomb of Huang Sheng in Fuzhou, Fujian Province.
The first prototype resembled a wrap-around skirt without pleats, known as Xuanqun, which limited movement compared to the later pleated mamianqun skirts.
“Women did not wear broad trousers and apron, and for the convenience of donkey riding, the whirling skirt (xuanqun) must have openings at both the back and the front. This style was popular among female performers in the capital but it was admired and imitated by female members of the literati families, which was indeed a shame". — Translated by Zhu et al, in A Social History of Middle-Period China: The Song, Liao, Western Xia and Jin Dynasties (2016), p.55
The second prototype was printed with large dots throughout, densely pleated except for the two sections at both edges of the skirt. Pleats, akin to those seen in present-day mamianqun, were also observed on the two sides of the skirt. This style of skirt is now known as baidiequn.
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