Bikini
A two-piece women’s swimsuit. The origins of the bikini date back to 1946 when Jacques Heim sought to make the smallest swimsuit possible, naming it the “atome” after the most miniscule of scientific particles. Louis Reard went one step further and split the “atome” in two at about the same time the atomic bomb was tested on Bikini Island. The bikini really exploded in the 1960s, however, when beach party movies and Brian Hyland’s “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini” hit the airwaves and made this eye-popping style a seaside favorite.
The picture above is of a mosaic on the floor of a Roman villa in Sicily at Amerina
The site where this information is featured belongs to Ralph Lauren. I have of course suggested to them that just as they would not appreciate anyone creating a "knock off" version of one of their designs it may be equally inappropriate to attribute credit for the invention to someone in 1946 when in fact the costume that gives rise to the name was already a fashion item during the times of the Roman Empire.
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