Object Description
Small decorative pillowcase. Brown fabric with paint. The scene is of the cross which is painted with a light brown color and added dark brown to create the appearance of wood. Multiple flowers are at its base: roses, lilies, peonies, alstroemeria (lily of the Incas), aster, and hypericum. There are two roses, both next to each other and at the bottom of the cross; one is painted in a light pink with dark pink for shadowing and a light green with a darker green for shadow. There are two lilies, both painted a light purple with navy, orange, and a slightly darker purple on the inner portion, and sit under the roses. The peony, which wraps on the cross is in a light pink with darker pink for definition. The aster is a light blue with a yellow center and is sitting directly next to the cross and stretches up to the center of it. The hypericum has an orange center and dark green stem/covering and is on the right side of the cross, coming up next to it and having a height to its center. The flap that would have been connected to it to make this a pillowcase is missing and there is fraying of the fabric.
Origin
Created by Penolope Neokos. She was born in Greece in 1899. In later years she came to the United States with her husband Nickolas, also native to Greece, where they became citizens of Illinois and lived in the city of Chicago. While in Chicago she and her husband lived with her brother, her two sons (Ernie and John), and their one daughter (Frances).
Seeing as this was made in Greece, it is fair to assume that this could have been used as a part of her dowry during her marriage to Niclolas and would have been brought over during their move to America.
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Citation
Pillow, 1900s, National Hellenic Museum, https://collections.nationalhellenicmuseum.org/Detail/objects/7298. Accessed 03/15/25.