Benaki Museum

Inv. No. EE 2570: Square scarf made of silk and decorated with the tie-dye technique. A big cross, formed by slightly wavy bands with a lozenge at their intersection, divides the scarf in four square panels. Each panel contains designs that are variants of the lozenge motif. Two diagonally positioned lozenges are similar; their centre is filled with six oblique lines consisting of yellow dots on a green background. The third lozenge contains a cross and the fourth encloses a four-petaled flower. The entire background of the scarf is filled with smaller lozenge in white, yellow, green, red and crimson colours. These are defined by dots, which are typical of the applied tie-dye technique. In many cases the red thread, used for tying the knots, is still preserved in the fabric. Two of the four sides of the scarf end in a hem, while the other two feature a fringe of small, crimson-coloured tassels, consisting of tied warp threads (see similar examples in Egoumenidou 1997, 43 fig. 12; Papademetriou 2008, 15, 29). Dimensions: 77x77 cm.

Inv. No. EE 2571: Decorative fez band (probably), made of crimson velvet. The one end of the band is broader and tongue-shaped, consisting of a separate, sewn piece. A hem is formed along the edges. The whole surface of the band, including its tongue-shaped end, is covered by a continuous wavy branch with leaves, blossoms and flowers, made of gold threads in padded satin stiches, and studded with seed pearls. At the back side, the band is lined with brown cloth. The back side of the embroidery is visible on the lining. The tongue-shaped end of the band is bordered with goldwork lace. Dimensions: Length: 58,5 cm. Width of band: 4 cm. Width of tongue-shaped end: 6,5 cm.

Dark red female fez, timeworn in many places. A long tassel made of black silk threads passes through the centre of the top and is then secured externally. The fez supplemented the female urban dress, while at the same time it was one of the basic complementary elements of the male attire. In 18th and 19th centuries property lists of deceased persons from Larnaca and Nicosia, fezzes imported from the Barbary Coast, namely from North African countries (Tunisia, Algeria, Maroco), are recorded as parpareshika. Fezzes were also locally made. Dimensions: Height: 18 cm. Diameter: 30 cm.

A sketch by D’Oulevay depicts the blocking of a fez with a mould, at a fez production workshop in Nicosia at the end of the 19th century (Deschamps 1897, III fig. 171).

 Inv. No. EE 4083: Vratzin (long and loose pantaloon worn as underwear) made of cotton. The lower ends, the povratzia, are made of thick cotton loom-woven cloth, covered with embroideries. The vratzin consists of seven pieces: one long, curving piece for the crotch, two similar pieces for the front and the back of the upper part of the garment - these also extend lower while becoming narrower -, two similar pieces for the sides, that cover the area of the thighs at the front and the back, and the two embroidered povratzia at the lower ends. At the upper edge the fabric is folded and sewn, so as for the white cotton vrakozonin (belt) to pass through the hem and secure the vratzin by tying around the waist.

The multicoloured embroideries of the povratzia are arranged in 17 vertical bands featuring consecutive stylized robust floral motifs, made by applying single stiches, regular or long-armed cross stiches, stem stiches and other types of stiches for solid filling. The aforementioned vertical bands alternate with 16 narrower bands, which consist of white open-work embroideries with a deep red or brown frame alternately. The colours of the embroideries vary: brown, green, yellow/golden, light blue, red/deep red. A stem stich made of red silk thread extends along and accentuates the joints between the two vertical edges of each embroidered piece and the thinner fabric of the vratzin. Similar stiches are found along other joints at the lower part of the garment and are also used for decorative purposes. At their lower ends, the povratzia are tightened around the ankles by a girdle, while at their inner side there is an opening which appears to have featured a button fastening. The buttons do not survive.

It is worth noting that the povratzia, made by a thicker embroidered cloth, were preserved for a longer time than the rest of the underwear and, when the latter perished, they were sewn onto a new one. Height: 90 cm., Width at the waist: 85 cm. Embroidered surface: 18x36 cm.

Inv. No. EE 4325: Povratzia, woven cotton fabric with loom embroideries made of hand-woven cotton threads in red, blue, light blue and yellow colours. The decoration is similar to the one found on povratzia no. 26134 of the Benaki Collection. The solid pefkoton feggaroton design, which characterises the lower ends of the vratzia worn as part of the Karpasia and Pafos female attire with sayia, consists of 18 vertical rows with consecutive lozenges in alternating blue and red colours. The big lozenges contain four smaller ones, each with a yellow coloured inside filling. Stylized trees, foinitzies (=palm tree) in a row, decorate the top long side of each povratzin. The bottom long side is sewn with a hem, and at the same side a decorative band made of two blue weft lines and a red one in the middle, extend along the edge of the embroidered area. Along their top long side, the two pieces of cloth are sewn together. Their narrow sides have been cut and at the one side of each piece another small piece of cotton cloth has been stitched. Dimensions: 54x25x42 cm. Width of embroidered surface: 44 cm. Publications: to add p. 102

no. 69 Inv. No. 26134: Povratzia from Pafos. The two identical, rectangular pieces of woven cotton are covered with pefkota (=dense as in carpets, the word deriving from the Greek word επεύχιον (epefchion, peftzin in the Greek-Cypriot dialect) loom embroideries, made of finger-woven cotton threads. Blue and red are the basic featured colours, while light yellow/beige and light blue are used as complementary. Remains of metallic thread are still preserved at certain points of the decoration.

The decorative pattern, which covers the whole surface of each povratzin, consists of rows of consecutive lozenges, in alternating red and blue colours. Each lozenge contains four smaller ones, the interior of which is of lighter colour or is made of shiny metallic thread, having a red or blue dot in the middle.

12 vertical rows of lozenges survive on each povratzin. A horizontal row of stylized trees, foinikoudes (= palm trees), in alternating red and blue colours, extends at the top, long side of both povratzia. Along the edges of each povratzin there are also three horizontal weft lines. Two of them are blue, while the one in-between is red. Dimensions: 45x30 cm.; 45x31 cm.

The povratzia belonged to the collection of Angeliki Pieridou  and were donated to Benaki Museum by George and Marina Pierides in 1981.

A similar embroidery with a feggaroto pattern is featured in: Pieridou 1980, pl. XXIγ; Pieridou 1976, pl. III. Such embroideries are usually found at the lower ends of vratzia (= baggy pantaloons worn by women as underwear), which were part of the Karpasia and Pafos female attire. Obviously, the povratzia presented here had a similar use.