pantaloon

ΜΓ 22

Women’s pantaloons of thick loom-woven cotton.

They consist of eight fabric sections. At the centre front and back, two pieces (one on each side)  extend from the waist downward across both legs, tapering from 20 cm at their top to 2.5-3 cm at the hem. Attached to these sections are two more, one across the inner side of each leg, tapering from 12 cm at the top to 4 cm at the hem. The left leg has two successive outer pieces whereas the right leg features a single outer piece. On the right side of the pantaloons, a small added fabric piece extends horizontally under the waist, front and back, across a total length of 23 cm.

Embroidered decoration in red and blue covers the lower part of both legs, externally. The dense (pefkoto) embroidery, in a design known as the karpasitikon (of the Karpasia area), features consecutive lozenges arranged in successive rows. The lozenges enclose smaller ones, while in their side corners’ cut-offs they contain single triangles. The pefkoto embroidery is crowned by a row of korou(d)es [girls] on the left leg and finikou(d)es [palm trees] on the right. Both motifs consist of a lozenge above a vertical line with two opposite-facing oblique projections that may depict leaves or hands. The korou(d)es are rendered with more elongated lozenges of two triangles joined along their base. The white-coloured woven fabric peeks through an uncovered vertical line in the middle.  The korou(d)es crafted with blue yarn feature red-coloured triangle fillings, while for those crafted with red yarn the fillings are blue. The pantaloon legs gather at the bottom.

All fabric sections at the upper part of the garment are folded outwards, forming a hollow hem casing (height: 3-3.5 cm) with a threaded drawstring.

Height: 80 cm.

Maximum width: 72 cm.

Width of leg opening: 21 cm.

Date of entry to the Collection: 26.10.1948

Provenance: Fyti, Pafos – Donation.

ΜΓ 551

Women’s pantaloons of loom-woven silk-cotton (koukkoullariko) taiston fabric.

The garment repeats the pattern of the preceding two pantaloons (ΜΓ 387, ΜΓ 146). Each leg consists of two oblong fabric panels: the broader one, measuring 44 cm in width, covers the front and extends partially to the back, whereas the narrower one, measuring 20-20.5 in width, completes the inner side of the back. Α four-sided fabric panel, added diagonally at the crotch, forms two triangles, one on each side of the garment (side lengths: 43 cm, 45 cm, 44 cm and 40 cm). A 2.7 cm-tall hem casing extends along the waist.

The pantaloon legs taper in their lower part, gathering in pleats above and below a horizontal machine-stitched cotton band, 1.5 cm tall. This band is decorated with a continuous zig-zag line of double feather stitch in red. Beneath the band, the remaining leg fabric forms a 8-9 cm-tall ruffle, which features seven hand-embroidered red crosses, four at the front and three at the back. A crochet lace band edges the legs, comprising two rows of continuous rectangles, followed by successive arches that enclose smaller ones (maximum height: 3 cm). Above the lace, a fine band of dense feather stitch in red adorns the edge of the ruffle.

Height: 70 cm.

Waist width: 64 cm.

Leg width: 32 cm in the upper part, 15 cm on the added band, 29-30 cm in the lower part (lace).

Date of entry to the Collection: 30.11.1987

Provenance: Asomatos, Kyreneia – Purchased from Maroulla Ilia Frantzia.

ΜΓ 421

Loom-woven cotton and silk-cotton (koukkoullariko) women’s pantaloons, most likely unworn, preserved in excellent condition.

The long pantaloons gather both at the bottom and around the waist, which features a machine- stitched hem casing, 2 cm tall. Two rectangular fabric panels (height: 32 cm, width: 20 cm) extend from the waist downwards, at the centre front and back of the garment (one on each side). Another two panels, one on each leg, cover the outer hip and thigh front and back, reaching up to the waist (height: 52 cm, width: 44 cm). These are joined to the rectangular pieces with vertical seams, featuring a low hem. Further down, two oblong panels extend along the inner side of the legs, reaching to the bottom (height: 65 cm, width: 20 cm). These are joined to the four panels mentioned above, as well as to each other under the crotch (joint length: 20 cm).

The lower outer side of the legs is made of silk-cotton fabric (height: 33 cm, width: 40 cm in the upper part), adorned with wide and narrow beige horizontal stripes. The pantaloons gather and fasten at their bottom by means of a thick string of braided yarn, passing through the hem casing.

The garment is entirely machine-sewn.

It is part of a woman’s ensemble, typical of the Karpasia region, which also includes the following garments: sayia ΜΓ 419, chemise ΜΓ 420, scarf ΜΓ 422 and kouroukla (headdress) with sequins ΜΓ 423. These were made on the loom in 1984 by Martha Hadjiloizi, originating from Yialousa, and are replicas of old garments from Karpasia.

Overall height: 87 cm.

Waist width: 43 cm.

Leg width: 33 cm (maximum), 17 cm (at the bottom gathering).

Date of entry to the Collection: 7.2.1985

Provenance: Yialousa, Karpasia – Purchase from Maria Sophroniou.

ΜΓ 387

Women’s pantaloons of thick loom-woven cotton, adorned with cross-stitch embroidery at their lower ends.

Each leg’s front consists of a single fabric panel, reaching from top to bottom, and extending to the outer back side. At the back, an additional fabric section (width: 21.5 cm and 11 cm at the gathered bottom) is joined to the front leg piece with handmade vertical seams, one along the inner thigh and another externally. At the crotch, between the two legs, a square piece of fabric (side length: 41 cm) is placed diagonally, forming two triangular sections, one at the front and one at the back. The handmade seams of this piece feature a low hem, measuring 0.3-0.8 cm in width.

To secure the pantaloons, a gathering string runs through the 1 cm hem, around the lower end of each leg. The embroidered decoration reaches a height of 13.5 cm and develops in successive horizontal bands, defined by single black cross-stitch lines. Along the bottom part, a 2 cm-tall band contains a row of oblique, double cross-stitch lines in red on one leg and in alternating red and black on the other. A broader central band, 6.5 cm tall, features a black zig-zag line that creates two rows of consecutive opposite-facing triangles. All triangles are filled with small squares (side length: 0.5 cm) alternating between red and black in diagonal rows. Small triangles extend along the sides of the bigger ones. This pattern creates a solid embroidered zone where the white loom fabric subtly peeks through small interstices. Further up, a low band, measuring 2 cm in height, contains a row of lozenges alternating between red and black (side length: 2 cm). At the top, 2.5 cm-tall stylized floral motifs, resembling palm trees (foinitzies), consist of a triangle above a lozenge. These motifs rest on a black cross-stitch line. At the back of each leg, the embroidery is interrupted at the width of the added fabric section. This part is decorated with two sapling motifs, one red and the other black (height: 7-8 cm). The red motif on one leg resembles the black motif on the other.

The pantaloons gather around the waist, which features a 3 cm-tall hem casing with a bulky drawstring of thick braided cotton yarn, measuring 1 cm in width.

Height: 84 cm.

Waist width: 36 cm (gathered).

Leg width: (in the upper part) (in the lower part).

Date of entry to the Collection: 8.7.1983

Provenance: Theletra, Pafos – Purchased from Despoinou Nikola.

ΜΓ 146

Women’s pantaloons of loom-woven white cotton fabric. This is an unworn garment, of the same pattern as the preceding one (ΜΓ 387).

The legs, which gather at the bottom with dense hand-sewn pleats, consist of two fabric sections each. The broader one, measuring 40-40.5 cm/41 cm in width, covers the front side and part of the back externally, whereas the other, measuring 18.5-19 cm in width on one leg and 20-20.5 cm on the other, completes the inner part of the back. A rectangular piece of fabric (sides: 36/36.5 cm x 34.5 cm), placed diagonally at the crotch, creates a triangle on either side of the garment. The seams at the joints of this additional piece are bulky, featuring a 0.5-0.7 cm hem.

The 3 cm-tall hem casing across the waist is machine-stitched, with a threaded drawstring.

Height: 70 cm.

Waist width: 61 cm.

Leg width: 30-31 cm in the upper part, 14.5 cm in the lower part.

Date of entry to the Collection: 1978

Provenance: Unknown.