The Aziz Damdelen Collection Kioneli (Gönneli)

Photograph of Veleddin Hüseyin (1887-1963). The photograph was taken by Glaszner around 1920. The young man is standing with his right arm resting on a pil­lar which has a coat-of-arms in relief on the front. On the pillar there is a goblet-shaped painted glass vase containing a bunch of flowers. The background shows the colonnaded balustrade of a balcony, as often seen in neoclassical houses. Veleddin holds a riding kırbaç (whip) with both hands. He has a moustache and short hair covered on top with a skull­cap, around which is wrapped a white headscarf decorated with lace (oyalı yemeni) in the tulip (lale) pattern. Over his white gömlek (shirt) he wears a waistcoat made of light-coloured blue broadcloth and richly decorated with applied silk braids which form thick bands all around the edges and schematized vegetal patterns on either side of the chest. Similar decoration composed of curvilinear patterns ending in heart-shaped leaves and spirals decorate either side of the pleated çuha şalvar; these baggy breeches are also made of broadcloth and match the waistcoat. This attire is a good example of the traditional fes­tive Turkish Cypriot townsman’s costume. He also wears a Tripoli (tarab­lus, turk. trablus) guşak (sash, turk. kuşak) around the waist, hand-knitted çorap (stockings) with square patterns (lokumlu, in the shape of lokum = Turkish delight) and black yarım kundura (low-heeled shoes, turk. yarim kuntura = half shoes) decorated with a bow. A long double watch chain seems to be hanging from the neck, under the collar of the gömlek (shirt); it falls down below the waist and turns upwards to dis­appear in the guşak (sash, turk. kuşak), where the watch (köstekli saat) must have been kept. 

Photograph of three men, taken in the Public Garden in Nicosia, as shown by the vegetation in the background. The young man in the middle is standing on a fennel stool with his hands resting on the shoulders of the men on either side, to show his higher status. He has short hair and a trimmed moustache. He wears an Ottoman fes (fez, turk. Osmanlı durulla fes), a white gömlek (shirt) with a kerchief tied around the neck under the collar to form a kind of tie, and a western-style three-piece suit: a buttoned waistcoat with an out-turned collar, a jacket with a white handkerchief in the left breast pocket, and trousers. A cord (of gold or silver thread – sırmalı) extends horizontally over the waistcoat across the waist but it is only partly visible under the jacket. The leather kundura (shoes, turk. kuntura) are black. On the little finger of his left hand he wears a ring. The man on the left side of the photograph is Mehmet Mıstık, born in 1896. He bears a moustache and his hair is mostly covered by a fes (fez). Only the collar of his white, black-spotted fanella (shirt) is visible, as the rest is covered by a knitted cardigan closed to the neck with buttons. Over this he wears a striped sakko (jacket) of western style with a white silk handkerchief in the pocket. The outfit is completed with tra­ditional black dizlik (baggy knee-breeches) and a colourful guşak (sash, turk. kuşak) around his waist; the sash must have been brought from Mecca, as it is referred to as hacı şalı guşak. Around his neck hangs a long köstek saat (watch chain). The chain continues downwards below the waist and then turns upwards with its end disappearing into the şalvar (sash). The çorap (stockings) reach up to the knees, where they meet the edges of the şalvar (breeches). They are hand-knitted with diamond-shaped patterns (paklava turk. baklava) in vertical rows. The costume is complemented with black kundura (shoes, turk. kuntura) decorated with buckles. The third man – on the right side of the photograph – is Mustafa Mıstık, a butcher who was born in 1892 and died in 1951. He has a thick moustache and short hair covered with a skullcap surrounded with a çember (headscarf) which has lace ornaments around the edges (oyalı çember). He wears a white gömlek (shirt) woven in the loom; it has a collar and wide sleeves ending in broad cuffs. The front part on the chest, which would be visible even under the waistcoat, is differentiated from the rest to become more decorative; thus, the stripes formed on the loom are vertical in the middle of the front part, but sewn diagonally on either side to create a contrast.The front part also seems to be hand-embroidered. This elaborate gömlek (shirt) is combined with black dizlik (knee-breeches) and a colourful şalvar (Breeches) around the waist; the sash is again from the Holy Land (hacı şalı kuşak/guşak); he also has a watch chain (turk. Köstek saat) that of the person on the left side. Worth noting are the richly decorated çorap (stockings), hand-knitted with five needles to form patterns in the shape of car­nation (garanfil). 

Studio photograph taken by Ahmet Şevki, in Nicosia. A young boy is sitting on a chair of Viennese type. He is wearing a three-piece suit of European style, made of English striped cashmere. A white gömlek (shirt) and a tie are to be seen under the waistcoat. He wears European shoes tied with laces, and çorap (stockings). On his head he wears an Ottoman fes (fez, turk. Osmanlı fesi). The photograph dates to about 1918. 

Studio photograph taken by Ahmet Şevki in Nicosia, about 1918. A young boy is standing with his left arm resting on a high corner table. He is wearing a two-piece suit made of English cashmere, a white gömlek (shirt) and a bow-tie. Attached on the collar of his jack­et there is a fresh carnation, as was fashionable in those days. European shoes and a soft fes (fez) made of keçe (felt), complete the attire.

Photograph of a young man called Adem, son of Hacı Tahir. He was born in 1900 and died in 1934. The photograph was taken in 1918, in the studio of Ahmet Şevki, with paintings and flower decoration in the background. He wears an Ottoman fes (fez, turk. Osmanlı durulla fes) with a headscarf ornamented with lace forming yellow tulip motifs. His light-coloured gömlek (shirt) is of the g(k)avuşturma type and is combined with white dizlik (knee-breeches) and white cotton çorap (stockings) provided with white cotton loom-woven garters with tassels. In sharp contrast to this light-coloured attire stands the polychrome imported silk guşak (sash, turk. kuşak). The silk polychrome guşak (sash, turk. kuşak) around his waist was imported from Tripoli (tarab­lus, turk. trablus) around the waist. The kundura (shoes, turk. kuntura) are black, decorated with a fiyonklu potin (bow-tie buckle) on the front; there is also a small buckle in the centre of the bow. This is a typical traditional attire.

Photograph of a young man, Mehmet Kahkül. It was taken in the studio of Ah­met Şevki around 1918. He is standing with his left hand resting on a couple of books placed on a high corner ta­ble. On the floor in front of the table is a flowerpot. In his right-hand Mehmet holds a gırbaç (whip, turk. kırbaç). Part of his short hair falls forward, in a style called kahgül. He also has a moustache. The headscarf that covers the head is orna­mented with tulip pattern lace (lale oyası). He wears a gömlek (shirt) of pistachio pattern (fıstıklı), with pleats in front and a collar, combined with şalvar, (baggy trousers) made of broadcloth (çufa, turk. çuha) and a silk colourful guşak (sash, turk. kuşak) from Tripoli (tarab­lus turk. trablus) around the waist. The şalvar (baggy trousers) seem to have applied braided decoration along the sides. Over the gömlek (shirt) he wears a black linen long sakko (jacket) with a tulip on the yaka (collar). Below the flower appears the zincir (chain) of his watch, attached to a ring. His legs are covered with long hand-knitted acurlu çorap (woolly stockings), which meet the end of the baggy trousers just below the knees.His flat slip-on shoes are of the type known as kun­dura (turk. kuntura), decorated with a bow (papyonlu kuntura).