Black and white

Margarita Eramian (née Carletti, 1868-1954) is wearing an elegant evening dress made of a dark and bright fabric with intricate floral patterns. Additional ruffles are decorating the short sleeves and the V-shaped opening on the chest, where there are attached two marguerites. The lower part of the dress, though hidden behind the back of an armchair, seems to have a full skirt flaring away naturally from the wearer’s tiny waist. The tight waist accentuates the elegant figure of the young lady. Her left arm, which is resting on the back of the armchair, is partly covered by a black shawl. Margarita’s dark hair is caught up and the outfit is completed by a bracelet and a ring in the middle finger of her right hand, in which she is holding flowers similar to those that decorate her décolleté. She seems to be absorbed by watching these flowers.

The photograph shows Margarita Eramian (née Carletti, 1868-1954) leaning on the back of a luxurious armchair, the same piece of furniture with that was shown in the previous photograph. However, in this photograph Margarita is older and dressed appropriately, according to her age. She is wearing a floor-length, western-style elaborate dark-coloured dress with long narrow sleeves and a high neckline. The pleated drapery of the front part of the skirt is gathered at the back, where the dress becomes more voluminous. Apparently, Margarita is wearing a bustle, a padded undergarment used to add fullness, or to support the drapery at the back of women’s dresses, according to the fashion in the mid- to late- 19th century. The underskirt of the dress is showing a much more structured fabric that is contrasting with the upper layer and also correlates with the same decorative fabric that is placed on a vertical strip down the front of her dress. The outfit is completed with pearl bracelets on both her wrists, earrings and a small hat (?) on top of her caught-up dark hair.

This photograph shows Margarita Carletti (1868-1954). She is dressed in an Oriental style inspired costume. The voluminous, bell-shaped skirt is made of a stiff, light-coloured fabric with floral patterns, and extends down to the floor. The upper part is made from a different fabric, it is more elaborate and has loose long sleeves, under which protruding are the sleeves of a white shirt. Encircling her waist is a narrow, white belt. The young, beautiful lady is also wearing an intricate headdress made of flowers on the top and ribbons falling over her shoulders. She is further accessorised with a bracelet, rings and earrings. The scenery around her is also impressive: Margarita is stepping with her left foot on a cushion lying on the floor and her elbow is resting on the back of an armchair, over which is hanging a heavy curtain with floral designs. She is looking at the spectator with a romantic, melancholic glance.

Photograph of Yeghsapet Eramian (née Stepanian), taken in a studio in 1898. She was the great-granddaughter of Sarkis Agha, and the daughter of Stepan Agha Krikorian and Heghine Boghossian (Philipposian). She was married to Boghos Eramian (1840-1918), who was a senior government official. Their first child was born in 1867. Yeghsapet died in Nicosia or in Dheftera in 1927. In the photograph the respectable, middle-aged lady is wearing a long wide skirt made from a dark-coloured material and a tailored, collared long jacket with slightly puffed long sleeves. The jacket is closed in front with a series of buttons. Both the skirt and the jacket are made of the same thick, shiny dark cloth. A black headscarf covers most of her brown hair.

The photograph shows Asdghig Eramian and Vahan Kouyoumdjian’s wedding. The groom is wearing a dark-coloured western-style suit with a white shirt and bow tie. He also has a small brooch pinned to his lapel. In his left hand he is holding a pair of white gloves. The bride is wearing a long white, western-style wedding dress and elbow-length gloves. She is further accessorised with a medium-length hooded veil, which is decorated with flowers in the front and an elegant embroidered ending. All bridesmaids are wearing similar in style, long white dresses with slightly ruffled sleeves and three horizontal ruffled stripes around the lower part of the dress, also wide-brimmed hats and white gloves. Hats and gloves were crucial to a respectable appearance for both sexes. The two bridesmaids on the right are further accessorised with pearl necklaces. Two of the flower girls are standing at the front and the other two are sitting on the floor. They are all wearing western-style dresses with ruffles. The dresses of the three of them are sleeveless, while the dress of the girl on the right has puffed sleeves. All the girls are wearing different styles of flower crowns. The little boy in the centre is wearing a white shirt with a collar and dark-coloured overalls with braces to hold them up.

The photograph was taken in Cairo, on the occasion of the wedding of Armenian-Cypriot Dickran Melikian and Egyptian-Armenian Alice Meutemedian either in 1919 or 1920. The groom is wearing a western-style suit, and white shirt with a high collar. The bride is wearing a white, ankle-length dress, white gloves and a hat that has a long transparent veil attached to it. Around the couple, the men are wearing European-style suits and fezzes. The man on the left side of the photograph is wearing a brimmed straw-hat decorated with a dark ribbon, and is holding a walking stick. The car for the newly-wed couple is decorated with flowers.

Armenian School in Nicosia, c. 1907. Originally formed as a place to give an Armenian education to the few local Armenian children, it evolved into a safe harbour for Armenian orphans fleeing persecution and genocide, and eventually the school became one of the best academically performing schools in Cyprus. All children in the photograph are dressed in their best clothes and the girls’ hair is decorated with ribbons. The three adults are presumably associated with the school, most probably being teachers. The priest is most probably der Hovhannes Shahinian. The man on the left is wearing a western-style suit, a white shirt and a tie. The woman on the right is wearing a long skirt with a belt around her waist and a white, high-necked, long-sleeved blouse. She has her hair caught up.

The photograph shows the wedding of Yevkenia Boudakian and Peniamin Boyadjian. The groom is wearing a western-style suit with a long overcoat, a white shirt with a high collar, bow tie and gloves. In his hand he is holding a bowler hat. The bride is wearing a white long and wide wedding dress spreading down on the floor and a transparent hooded veil. This opulent wedding dress is decorated with intricate patterns. She is also wearing white gloves and white shoes with high heels. In her right hand she is holding a rich bouquet of flowers. The photograph has been taken in a studio.

The photograph shows Aghavni Arslanian (née Boudaghian) and Artin Arslanian. He is wearing a tall fez, a white shirt with a high collar and white bow tie, trousers and a long overcoat closed with buttons. Aghavni is wearing a white blouse with a wide collar, a dark-coloured long skirt, and a jacket that accentuates her waist, according to the fashion of the 1910s. She is further wearing elbow-length gloves, a brooch and an impressive, black hat. The photograph has been taken in a studio.

The photograph shows Aghavni Arslanian (née Boudaghian, 1878-1976) and Artin Arslanian. He is wearing a western-style suit, with dark-coloured shoes, a vest, a white shirt with a high collar and a tie. On a buttonhole of his vest is attached the chain of a pocket watch. Aghavni is wearing a white blouse with a high ruffled neck, a long dark-coloured skirt and a thick jacket with an elaborate decoration of three buttons on each shoulder and on the cuffs. She is further accessorised with a large, impressive hat, decorated with feathers and flower applications. She has short hair and in her right hand she is holding a bouquet of flowers. The photograph has been taken in a studio.