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View submission: Why is symbolic headwear so common among leadership classes historically?
Martin Wobst published an article in 1977 called "Stylistic Behavior and Information Exchange" (which you can find online if you look for it). The article is a classic in anthropology, and although it's a little old, there are still some great ideas in it.
The article as a whole deals with how we transmit social information about ourselves-- in particular information about our social identify, group belonging, community association, etc.-- to others, both within various social groups that we belong to, and those in other social groups.
Without getting into the weeds (I really encourage reading the paper, it's a great read), one of the things that Wobst discussed was the use of certain articles of clothing might be more or less useful for transmitting information to those at different social distances from the person transmitting the message. The more "distant" from you that someone is, the more general and "loud" the transmission has to be. Subtle variations in the buttons on the jacket you wear might not be the best option if your goal is to show that you're a friend from shooting range. You might-- as Wobst noted-- instead wear a brightly colored hat and jacket that someone could see from a distance.
Within a particular social group / community that recognizes and shares the symbolic / stylistic language, you can have certain indicators of social role or (in hierarchical societies) social rank.
Headgear is at eye level, and since we look at the face and head, elaborate headgear is a natural option for communicating important social information, including "I'm in charge here."
There's nothing here!