Costume Museum of Lykeion ton Ellinidon

Woman’s headscarf made of kouroukla, dyed with a dark burgundy colour, called xidin (the colour of vinegar). They are decorated with printed floral motifs in red and yellow, with black outlining. The designs – of the edges (kkenarin) and the four corners (the milia) – are similar to those of the other printed headscarves of the workshop of Evris Michael (or Euripides Mantilaris) and Kakoullis Brothers. Pipilla lace decorates the edges of the headscarves and is handsewn in silk thread. The lace pattern features tiny white flowers with green leaves, repeated in a row.

Similar scarves exist in the Benaki Museum (Rizopoulou-Egoumenidou 2010, 111, no. 77; see also Hadjimichali 1983, 394, fig. 423), in the Cyprus Folk Art Museum of the Society of Cypriot Studies, in the Leventis Municipal Museum of Nicosia, in the Historical and Folklore Museum of Corinth, in the Municipal Museum of Folk Art in Limassol, as well as in private collections.

Dimensions: length 100 cm., width 100 cm.

Workshop of printed headscarves Evris Michael and Kakoullis Brothers, Nicosia.

Purchased in Nicosia in the 1960s at the price of 55 drachmas.

Donation: I. Papantoniou.

Woman’s headscarf made of kouroukla, a thin cotton cloth, dyed in a green colour. They are decorated with printed floral motifs in red and yellow, with black outlining. The edges, known as the kkenarin, are decorated with a repeated composition of leaves and flowers in diagonal arrangement, while the inner four corners are decorated with neoclassical-style wreaths (milia pattern). The lace edging (pipilla) forms tiny flowers, a pattern called foulin, inspired by the synonymous white flower. The headscarves are printed by specialist technicians called mantilarides, while the pipilla was made by women. The green headscarf was worn by young women, and for this reason, headscarves of this colour fell out of use in the course of the 20th century.

Selected printed green headscarves are preserved in museum collections, for example in the Cypriot Collection of the National Historical Museum in Athens (Gangadi et al. 1999, 178-179, fig. 178), in the Cypriot ethnographic collection of the Benaki Museum (Rizopoulou-Egoumenidou 2010, 111, no. 78; see also Hadjimichali 1983, 394, fig. 422), in the Cyprus Folk Art Museum of the Society of Cypriot Studies, in the Leventis Municipal Museum of Nicosia, and in private collections.

Dimensions: length 100 cm., width 100 cm.

Workshop of printed headscarves Evris Michael and Kakoullis Brothers, Nicosia.

Women’s fez of red felt, without lining. It is paired with a small white headscarf (CMLE 2116/9). The fez has two black tassels of silk thread, one short and one long. The short tassel is secured radially to the top of the fez, where it forms the tepeliki. Its fringes fall all around, covering the rest of the surface and are secured with two rows of stitches. The second tassel, a long dangling flokkos, falls to the side and reaches the shoulder. On the other side of the fez, a white headscarf of georgette material is attached, decorated all around with pipilla, fine needle lace, sewn with golden thread and green thread. In the four corners, there is a rudimentary decoration of tiny gold sequins secured with green thread.

Fez dimensions: height 12 cm., diameter 14 cm., tassel length: 63 cm.

Purchase price: 35 drachmas on 28-04-1956.

Women’s fez of red felt, without lining. It has two black tassels of silk thread, one short and one long. The short tassel forms the tepeliki at the top of the fez. Its fringes fall all around, covering the rest of the surface, and are secured with two rows of stitches. The second tassel, a long dangling flokkos (tassel), falls to the side and reaches the shoulder.

Fez dimensions: height 14 cm., diameter 14 cm., tassel length: 48 cm.

Purchase price: 149 drachmas on 27-12-1956.

Sarka, women’s short long-sleeved jacket made of black silk fabric and lined with cotton fabric in a salmon hue. The front is made of two similar pieces, 45 cm. high and 27 cm. wide, with pointed ends. The two pieces extend to the sides and join with the single piece that covers the back. The flared sleeves are sewn vertically onto the body, with inner seams. They are 46 cm. long, 17 cm. wide at the shoulders and 30 cm. wide at the flared ends. The back has a height of 32 cm. and its maximum width reaches 27 cm.

There is a sewn-on golden thread decoration of ready-made lace with a width of 2 cm. at the front opening, the bottom edge and around the ends of the sleeves. The pattern consists of continuous elaborate semi-circular motifs.

Dimensions: height 45 cm., width 54 cm. Sleeves: length 46 cm., width 17-30 cm.

Sarka, women’s short long-sleeved jacket made of black felt, with sewn-on decoration. The sarka consists of one piece of fabric, which covers the chest and most of the back, with additional pieces covering the body under the armpits and extending to the back. The sleeves are made of separate pieces of felt, which are sewn vertically onto the body. The chest has a deep oval opening, which becomes straight at its lower part, where it closes with five hook-and-eye type clasps. Around the opening of the chest, all around the bottom edge and at the edges of the sleeves, there is a sewn-on decorative band of twisted cord and golden thread, which form continuous spirals of stylised floral motifs with a chain-like finish. Along the perimeter of the waist, below the sewn-on decoration, there are three silk ribbons in olive green, coral and bright blue colour, sewn on the felt. The sarka is lined with beige cotton fabric, and the bottom edges of the sleeves are lined with a deep red silk fabric with interwoven floral motifs. It is preserved in quite a good condition, although in many places the sewn-on decoration has come apart.

This type of floral decoration is quite common and characterises many Cypriot sarkes, which are part of the bridal or festive Amalia-style costume, initially urban and later also rural (as indicative examples, see sarkes dating between 1850 and1870, from Peristeronopigi, a village in the Ammochostos district, in Michalopoulou-Charalambous 1993, 196-197).

Dimensions: height 39.5 cm., width 43 cm. Sleeves: length 45 cm., width 17-19 cm.

Sarka of black felt with long sleeves and a low standing collar, 3 cm. high. The front part consists of two pieces of fabric. The sleeves are sewn vertically to the body and for ease of movement there are two gussets under each armpit (additional triangular pieces joined at the longest side). The triangles reach 7 cm. above the lower edge of the sarka. The back consists of a single piece.  

The sarka has a rich decoration of gold-wrapped thread and double rows of metallic soutache joined with a metallic thread of fine quality. The finish of the collar, the front opening, and the bottom edges of the sarka all feature the same decoration, while the sleeve seams are also emphasised with soutache. The designs consist of a series of arches with spiral extensions between them, above a series of vertical lines,1 cm high. The central arch at the edge of the back is crowned with a complex curvilinear motif, perhaps a stylised tree,10 cm. high. At the join of the seam of the sleeves with the bottom decorative band, tiny spiral patterns 6 cm. high frame both sides of the soutache that covers the seam of the sleeves, as an extension of the decoration at the bottom edge of the sarka. At the front, each side of the chest features a large, elongated paisley; its surface is covered with stylised, swirling floral motifs. The upper tip of the paisley extends to a delicate pattern of spirals. At the back part of the neck, below the collar, there is a simpler lattice pattern in golden thread, with tiny loops at the tips.

Although this sarka is of a common type, it is distinguished by its meticulous manufacture, and especially by its elegant and intricate decoration, which is further emphasised by the sharp contrast between the gold designs and the black felt.

The sarka is lined with a beige fabric. It is identical with sarka CMLE 2113/8.

Dimensions: height 39 cm., width 40 cm. Sleeves: length 45 cm., width 16.5 cm.

Purchase Price: 510 drachmas. Purchased the same year as the previous one but at half the price.

Sarka of black felt with long sleeves and a low standing collar, 3 cm high. The front part consists of two pieces of fabric. The sleeves are sewn vertically to the body and for ease of movement there are two gussets under each armpit (additional triangular pieces, joined at the longest side). The top of the triangles is 7 cm above the bottom edge of the sarka. The back consists of a single piece.  

The sarka has a rich decoration of gold-wrapped thread and double rows of metallic soutache, joined with a metallic thread of fine quality. The finish of the collar, the front opening, and the edges of the bottom part of the sarka all feature the same decoration, while the sleeve seams are also emphasised with soutache. The designs consist of a series of arches with spiral extensions between them, above a series of vertical lines, 1 cm. high. The central arch at the edge of the back is crowned with a complex curvilinear motif, perhaps a stylised tree,10 cm. high. Where the seam of the sleeves meets the bottom decorative band, tiny spirals, 6 cm. high, frame both sides of the soutache that covers the seam of the sleeves, as an extension of the decoration that lines the bottom edge of the sarka. At the front, each side of the chest features a large, elongated paisley; its surface is covered with stylised, swirling floral motifs. The upper tip of the paisley extends into a delicate pattern of spirals. At the back part of the neck, below the collar, there is a simpler lattice pattern in golden thread, with tiny loops at the tips.

This sarka, although of a common type, is distinguished by its meticulous manufacture, and especially by its elegant and intricate decoration, which is further emphasised by the sharp contrast between the gold designs and the black felt.

The sarka is lined with a beige fabric.

Dimensions: height 39.5 cm., width 43 cm. Sleeves: length 46 cm., width 17 cm.

Purchase Price: 1200 drachmas.

Two maniketta (cuffs), made of striped silk, taisto, the same as that of the trachilia (CMLE 514), with wide and narrow bands in the warp. The upper part is closed with a drawstring. Each one consists of a single piece with an inner seam. They are adorned with elaborate handmade pipilla edging, consisting of continuous flowers with five petals and a sixth which is triangular and connected to the base of the lace. In between the flowers, there are five small leaves above arches, which connect the flower petals on either side.

Dimensions: width 66 cm., height 30 cm. Width of lace: 4 cm.

Trachilia made of striped, taisto, silk woven fabric, with wide and narrow bands in the warp. The trachilia covers the bust and is worn underneath the sarka, as an alternative to the shirt. It consists of three pieces. The two front pieces each have a height of 50 cm. and a width of 43 cm. The finish at the bottom is a simple hem, while the V-shaped neck opening, which continues as a vertical opening, is decorated with handmade pipilla lace, 1 cm. wide. The pattern consists of a series of tiny triangles, which are reminiscent of little cypress trees. At the back, the two pieces of fabric are joined to a third piece, also of striped silk, with a height of 24 cm. and a width of 43 cm. At the edges of the back piece, there are two bands of thin cord, 46 cm. each, which tie at the back.

Dimensions: front pieces: height 50 cm., width 43 cm.