Rose Pappas collection

Portrait photograph of a woman wearing a traditional Greek garment with many layers. She wears a knee-length off-white chemise over a pair of knee-length pantaloons. Over the chemise is a crimson knee-length tunic embellished with gold thread and colourful silk embroidered floral motifs. Wrapped around her waist and hips is a woven sash with fine checked pattern. Worn over the sash and tunic is a dark coloured three-quarter length overcoat with cream-coloured fur trim down the front opening and hems of the sleeves. The woman wears a yellow, red and blue beanie-shaped hat, and a bright pink silk shawl with long fringed edges is draped over her head and shoulders. The woman wears a pair of embroidered gold slippers with a small heel. - click to view larger image — Rose Pappas’s daughter-in-law in traditional Castellorizian costume

This traditional Greek costume belonged to Rose Pappas and is one of only three known traditional formal costumes remaining from Castellorizo, Greece.

This garment was an important piece of Rose Pappas’s life growing up on the Greek island and was brought with her when she and her family migrated to Australia after the Second World War.

National costume

The Rose Pappas collection includes a traditional women’s formal garment from the Greek island of Castellorizo. It was made around 1920 for Rose Pappas, and worn by her for special occasions such as weddings, feast days, national holidays or religious celebrations.

This garment was specially made for Rose Pappas. Several specialist seamstresses and embroiderers were involved in the handmaking of these pieces. The complete costume includes a chemise (poukamiso), pantaloons (kontovrakes), vest (zeponi), sleeveless jacket (kavathi), button brooch (mpoukles), sash (zosma), coat (gouna), hat (pappazi), shawl (mandili) and slippers (kontoures).

Photograph of corner details of a pink silk shawl. The edges of the shawl have a hand-woven honeycomb pattern and long fringed edge. The corner of the shawl has large embroidered floral motifs, with three larger flowers with gold, blue and purple silk thread, and an embroidered peacock-like bird. These are surrounded by smaller, more intricate floral details and vine patterns. - click to view larger image — Castellorizian silk shawl

Photograph of details of a gold-coloured metal bracelet. The rectangular clasp of the bracelet has a Greek meander pattern. The bracelet consists of three chains of daisy-like units connected together by metal link chains. Every second line of daisy segments is decorated with a turquoise-coloured stone in the centre. A few of these turquoise stones are missing. - click to view larger image — Castellorizian gold bracelet

Photograph of a pair of Greek backless slippers with a small heel. The slippers are covered in cream-coloured velvet and heavily embroidered with gold thread in a daisy motif with a swirling border. The slippers have a slightly pointed toe. They are photographed on a piece of white cloth. - click to view larger image — Castellorizian slippers

Most women on Castellorizo had such garments, usually received when they came of a certain age and were thought to have reached womanhood. They were also worn during match-making processes and as bridal costumes.

The different components and layers of the garment made it adaptable to a number of different occasions, and different parts of the costume were worn depending on the importance of the event. The way the costume was worn could also indicate a woman’s age, wealth or marital status.

Portrait photograph of a woman with short dark hair wearing a knee-length off-white chemise with long, loose sleeves. Under the chemise are a pair of knee-length black and cream pantaloons, only just visible under the chemise. The woman wears five gold button brooches, running down the chest of the chemise, and a pair of embroidered gold slippers with a small heel. She stands facing the camera with her hands by her side. - click to view larger image

Portrait photograph of a woman with short dark hair wearing a traditional Greek garment with multiple layers. She wears a knee-length off-white chemise with long, loose sleeves. Under the chemise are a pair of knee-length black and cream pantaloons, only just visible the under chemise. Over the chemise is a short-sleeved red vest and crimson knee-length tunic, both open at the front. The tunic is embellished with gold thread and colourful silk embroidered floral motifs. The woman wears five gold button brooches, running down the chest of the chemise, and a pair of embroidered gold slippers with a small heel. She stands facing the camera with her hands by her side. - click to view larger image

Complete Castellorizian garment

Marina Pappas wearing complete traditional Castellorizian costume. A young woman would wear the shawl over her head and tied around the neck, an older married woman would wear the shawl draped over the head and shoulders. A black shawl indicated the woman was in mourning.

First layers

Wife of George Pappas, Rose Pappas’s eldest son, wearing the first layers of a traditional Castellorizian costume (chemise, pantaloons, button brooch and slippers), given to her by Rose Pappas.

Vest, button brooch, slippers and chemise

Marina Pappas wearing traditional Castellorizian costume with vest, button brooch, chemise, pantaloons and slippers.

Sleeveless jacket

Marina Pappas wearing traditional Castellorizian costume with sleeveless jacket, vest, button brooch, chemise, pantaloons and slippers.

Coat and sash

Marina Pappas wearing traditional Castellorizian costume with hat, coat, sash, sleeveless jacket, vest, button brooch, chemise, pantaloons and slippers.

Castellorizo island

Castellorizo – or Kastellorizo – is part of the Dodecanese islands in the eastern Mediterranean, 10 kilometres from the south coast of Turkey and 570 kilometres southeast of Athens. Although it is one of the smaller Greek islands with an area of roughly 10 square kilometres, the island once boasted a large merchant fleet and prosperous trade opportunities.

The island – also known under the name Megisti – is thought to have been occupied as early as the 9th century BCE. It was once home to over 10,000 people, but today has a population of approximately 500.

Castellorizo was occupied by the Ottoman Turks between 1512 and 1915. After a brief return to Greece, it was then occupied by the French and Italians until 1943. In 1943 Castellorizo was bombed by German forces, and its civilian population evacuated to refugee camps in Cyprus, including Rose Pappas and her family. This occurred swiftly and with little notice, and many families were forced to leave behind many of their possessions.

Castellorizo was bombed several more times after this, causing severe damage to much of the island and its residences. Many houses were also the targets of looting and arson by allied soldiers. In 1948 Castellorizo was finally reunited with Greece.

Crimson full-length tunic, part of Castellorizian formal attire worn by Rose Pappas Description Greek crimson full-length tunic with a rounded plain neckline and two side splits. It is fully lined with highly decorative damask weave fabric at the front opening and around the hem. It has orange silk to the main body. The main fabric is of highly decorative damask weave (composite). Decorated with black and gold braid, embroidered floral motifs in gold thread, and various coloured silk threads. Tuck sewn at waist. The bodice section is lined with calico. - click to view larger image — Castellorizian tunic

Pappas family leaves Castellorizo

Rose Pappas fled to refugee camps in Cyprus with her husband Nicholas and six children. Although many civilians from Castellorizo were soon moved to refugee camps in Palestine, the Pappas family was able to stay because of Nicholas Pappas’s involvement with allied intelligence.

After four years as refugees in Cyprus, Rose’s eldest son, George, and two eldest daughters, Eva and Maria, migrated to Australia. Under the sponsorship of relatives who had migrated before the war, the siblings settled in Australia in 1947.

The rest of the family followed in 1949 and settled in Sydney, and this traditional garment was one of the few items Rose Pappas brought with her. As was tradition, she passed her Castellorizian costume to her eldest son’s wife.

The Castellorizo garment is said to be one of the most complete authentic garments from Castellorizo in existence since the evacuation of Castellorizo during the Second World War and the subsequent damage to the island. A similar garment is kept at the Benakis Museum in Athens and another is preserved at the Castellorizian Association of New South Wales in Kingsford.

Greek migration

The Pappas family were among thousands of Castellorizians who migrated to Australia after the Second World War, and among more than 160,000 migrants of Greek origin. Today it is estimated that more than 30,000 Australians are of either Castellorizian origin or parentage.

Greek migration to Australia began as early as the 19th century. The discovery of gold and subsequent gold rushes in the 1850s saw large numbers of Greek people among the many who migrated to Australia.

The 1901 Immigration Restriction Act (the formal establishment of the White Australia Policy) greatly limited non-British migration to Australia. In 1947 those born outside of Australia, Ireland or the United Kingdom made up a mere 2.7 per cent of the population.

By the late 1940s it became clear that these migration limits were having negative effects on Australia’s population growth. After the Second World War the immigration minister Arthur Calwell began to relax the policy to allow migrants and refugees from continental Europe. More than two million immigrants arrived in Australia between 1945 and 1965.

Rose Pappas with her daughter-in-law

Rose Pappas collection

After settling in Sydney, Rose Pappas cherished her Castellorizian heritage and maintained her traditions and customs. This traditional Castellorizian garment was kindly donated by the family of Rose Pappas to the National Museum of Australia in 1988.

Crimson full-length tunic, part of Castellorizian formal attire worn by Rose PappasGreek crimson full-length tunic with a rounded plain neckline and two side splits. It is fully lined with highly decorative damask weave fabric at the front opening and around the hem. It has orange silk to the main body. The main fabric is of highly decorative damask weave (composite). Decorated with black and gold braid, embro...