Quilt No.801DA - Dora Andonaros
2070 x 2000mm
The quilt was made by a local quiltmaker on the Greek island of Lemnos, village of Varos in 1957. It was ordered by Mary Kalenteridis, already in Australia, for her young daughter Dora's trousseau. It was brought to Australia by Mary's brother Christos. Dora Andonaros is the only owner. It is still used.
"Dora's Paploma
In 1957 Mary (Zaimis) Kalenteridis came to Australia with her three daughters, Kristalo, Dora (Theodora), and Ellie, leaving behind their village of Atsiki, on the beautiful north Aegean island of Lemnos, Mary's husband George had preceded them eighteen months earlier. After a time in Canberra, the family moved to Goulburn NSW, where their fourth daughter, Bella, was born, and where George owned a men's barber shop for many years.
Although the girls were young, when they arrived - Dora was only seven, Mary wanted them to have a proper 'prika' (trousseau) in preparation for when they would be old enough to marry. So, a short time after arriving, Mary sent back to her island and ordered three quilts, which her brother Christos brought out. The cotton used in their making was grown on Lemnos, and indeed, one of Dora's enduring childhood memories is of her mother, helping to pick cotton at her grandfather's farm. Mary explains that: 'Paplomata (quilts) were considered a top priority for girls. All handmade, they come in different patterns and designs. Often we would pin a 'sindoni' (embroidered shee)t on to the bottom of the paploma, to protect it. The sheet would be removed for washing or for the 'yiortes', special feast days'.
Dora is very fortunate to have such a 'sindoni', handed down from her mother; handwoven on a traditional 'argalio' (loom) and embroidered with the initials, E.X, of the maker. Together the sindoni and paploma stand as symbols of age-old customs and traditions, and of the changes which inevitably happen through migration.
Dora's husband John also came to Australia from Lemnos. They owned a shop for seventeen years, but now live on their five acre farm where they have a vineyard, olive trees and honeybees. Dora and John have two sons, Paul and George; and a daughter Chrisoula. She and her husband Dimitri have a daughter, Evelyn."
[Written by Lula Saunders; adapted from interview 10.1.01 for the National Quilt Register]
Related Quilts:
1010 x 840mm
The coverlet is decorated with rows of pieced work surrounding appliquéd and embroidered scenes. A panel down the LHS of the quilt and a smaller panel lower RHS depict animals and floral images. In the centre RHS an elderly couple sit beneath a tree. In the upper left a bride and groom accompanied by three flower girls are showered with petals from a wicker basket carried by a very large angel. Glass beads, sequins and a button have been used to highlight the appliqué and embroidery.
As with all of Mary Jane Hannaford's quilts, the work is stitched by hand and quite crudely, but the naivety of the images is overwhelming with their charm." [NGA] The quilt is not padded or lined. 1950 x 1690mm
2240 x 885mm
2070 x 2000mm