Object ID
2013.16.7
Object Name
Shirt, Dress
Alternative Name
ypodetes
Material
Cotton
Object Entities
Kremidas, George (owned by)
Apostle, James (is related to)
Apostle, Geraldine (is related to)
Kremidas, George (is related to)
Baltas, Despina (is related to)
Object Description
This white shirt has buttons down the top half of its front. There are three buttons with the topmost closing the shirt's collar and the bottommost just at the middle of the shirt. The sleeves have pleats at the top of the shoulder that give the sleeves volumeand make them quite wide. It creates a visual consistency with the pleats of the fustanella that would be worn under it. The shirt appears to be made from the same cotton as the fustanella (2013.16.3). However it has considerably more yellow and brown staining than the skirt. The back especially has a large stain on the left shoulder.
Origin
This outfit was worn by Mr. Kremidas from the time he was twenty until he was quite old (approximately 1880-1960). The ypodetes is a white shirt with wide sleeves. While the shirt is no longer everyday wear for most Greeks it would have been common when George Kremidas was young. Today the Evzones (Presidential guard) wear them over their fustanellas. The outfit races it origins to the uniforms of the Klephts who fought the Ottman Turks in the War for Greek Indepedence.

George Kremidas and his wife Despina lived in the Greek village of Dessila, Greece. Dessila is a tiny village in the area of Messenia on the Peloponnese. Their daughter Angeliki, the third of five children, was the only member of the immediate family to emmigrate to America. While living in New England, she married Nicholas Apostolos and subsequently gave birth to two sons: George and James. The family moved to Michigan and both sons served in the military during World War II. Afterwards both sons earned degrees from Worsham College of Mortuary Scieince in Chicago and opened a mortuary in Muskegon, Michigan together. James married Geraldine Pavlis. In 1960 the two left to visit his family in Greece, however, on the day of their departure George Kremidas (James' grandfather) passed away at the age of 98. The personal artifacts included in this accession were given to the Apostles during this trip.
Rights and Reproduction
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Citation
Shirt, Dress, National Hellenic Museum, https://collections.nationalhellenicmuseum.org/Detail/objects/9822. Accessed 03/28/24.