Square cloths made of silk, cotton, or linen, were personal items used historically.  They were called handkerchiefs, kerchiefs, bandanas, and babushka scarves.  The smaller pieces of cloth would be used for wiping one's face, hands, nose; and the larger pieces would be worn about the neck or head.  In the middle ages, knights wore them on their arms as a communication between lovers.  In earlier times, handkerchiefs or scarves would be waved or thrown into the air to demonstrate honor and approval of royalty.  Christian tradition likens the burial face cloth of Jesus to one of these handkerchief type cloths.  John makes a distinction between the larger shroud which wrapped Jesus' body and a smaller face cloth.  "Then Simon Peter came, following him, and entered into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying, and the cloth that had been on his head, not lying with the linen cloths, but rolled up in a place by itself." (Jn 20:6-7 Web)  This cloth was believed to have been used to clean and cover the face of Jesus after the crucifixion.  The size is thought to have been around 34" x 21".  (See also Jn 11:44)  Paul's personal handkerchief appears in the New Testament as a cloth used supernaturally for healing and cleansing.  "God worked special miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons (scarves) were carried away from his body to the sick, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out." (Acts 19:11-15 Web)  [See sudarion or sudarium.]