Cycladic society has many matriarchal components, and Mykonos exhibits clear proof of this. To today, the household residence remains to be a part of the daughter’s inheritance slightly than the son’s, and the eldest daughter all the time takes the title of her maternal, not her paternal, grandmother. Even in earlier occasions, when gender inequality was extra pronounced, Mykonian ladies didn’t comply with the standard roles prevalent in different small rural communities.
Earlier than the appearance of tourism, when the island was impoverished and water and different assets had been scarce, the ladies of Mykonos had been the bedrock of society. Whereas the lads of the island had been busy fishing or engaged on ships, the ladies of Mykonos, aware of each the non-public and public spheres, would deal not solely with cooking and baby rearing, however farming and essential decision-making as nicely.
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The hotelier, the weaver, the service provider
The troublesome dwelling circumstances and the necessity for survival cultivated persistence, industriousness, flexibility and adaptableness within the ladies of Mykonos, traits that laid the groundwork for the island to turn into what it’s at the moment. They haven’t been awarded as a lot credit score as they deserve, but it was the willpower and ingenuity of Mykonian ladies that allowed Mykonos to distinguish itself from the typical Cycladic island and to chart its personal course. These traits, mixed with the island’s proximity to Delos, have made Mykonos into the island that we all know at the moment.
Excavations on Delos started in 1873 by the French Archaeological Faculty and continued into the early many years of the twentieth century. Archaeology fans who traveled the Aegean on their journey to the birthplace of Apollo handed via Mykonos, admired its beauties and stayed for just a few days. And the place did they keep? In Mykonian homes, on beds made for them by Mykonian ladies. Households would retire to again rooms or courtyards to sleep, surrendering the choicest lodging to their friends. Alongside the hospitality they offered, the ladies of the island had been expert on the loom; they had been proficient weavers who turned sheep’s wool into rugs, covers and clothes for his or her family members, and in addition bought these woven items to the island’s guests.
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Manto, Melpo and Maria
Together with the myriad nameless ladies who helped the island via troublesome occasions, there have been three particularly who usually are not solely recognized to historical past, however who’ve transcended the slender boundaries of the island to garner nationwide acclaim. These three left profound marks on completely different fields, starting from conflict to literature to the visible arts. Manto Mavrogenous (c. 1796-1840), born in Trieste to a father from Paros and a mom from Mykonos, earned her spot within the pantheon of Greek heroes through the 1821 Greek Warfare of Independence by funding the conflict effort and, in response to most accounts, main defenders in battle in opposition to raiding Algerian pirates allied with the Ottomans. Her contribution on the time was not totally appreciated by the Greek political and mental institution – this solely befell after her demise.
Author Melpo Axioti (1905-1973) is probably probably the most well-known Greek poetess of her era after Maria Polydouri. She embraced political causes, traveled, married, divorced and left a big legacy in poetry and prose, a physique of labor influenced by surrealism and feminism.
Maria Igglesi (1882-1942) is the least recognized of the three, a pioneering painter who, along with her artwork, additionally labored in journalism. She lived in Italy and have become an professional on its museums and monuments, usually sending experiences on the humanities to the Greek press.
Along with a bust honoring her within the city sq., the good Manto can also be commemorated by the summer time movie show Cine Manto, whereas Maria Igglesi is remembered in the Municipal Artwork Gallery of Mykonos, housed in her household’s residence.
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The Virgin Mary
As on each Cycladic island, so, too, on Mykonos is the Virgin Mary cherished within the hearts of the folks. Up to now, virtually each home had not less than one chapel devoted to the Mom of God or to different saints. Even in much less prosperous households, folks made positive to construct a small chapel of their discipline the place anybody may worship. Because the Seventies, nevertheless, and the onset of a rash of thefts, household chapels have been locked and are actually solely opened upon request to the proprietor.
The Panagia (“Virgin Mary”) of Kouzis is one such non-public chapel, the place the worship of the Virgin Mary took on a distinctly Mykonian character via an affiliation with Georgoulis Kouzis, the mayor of Mykonos through the Fifties and Sixties.
Along with the non-public chapels, three of probably the most well-known Mykonian church buildings or chapels devoted to the Virgin Mary are the brilliant white Paraportiani (positioned between the previous port and Little Venice), a ravishing church resembling a grand sculpture, the Cathedral Nice Panagia (often known as Panagia Pigaditissa or Angelohtismeni or Zoodohos Pigi), and Panagia Tourliani in Ano Mera. Throughout Lent, the icon from the Panagia Tourliani is carried in a procession to one of many three parish church buildings in Hora. This 12 months it’s being hosted by Aghia Kyriaki), the place it is going to stay, so that individuals will pay their respects, till Lazarus Saturday (which this 12 months falls on April twenty seventh).
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Historical past and Helen of Troy
Above Ftelia Seaside, within the massive enclosed bay within the north of the island, stretches a Neolithic metropolis masking seven acres and relationship again to 5000 BC, the place the inspiration stones of rectangular buildings, uncommon jewellery, pottery, collectible figurines, a mannequin ship and a toddler’s cremated and ritually buried stays had been found.
On the other – or southern – aspect, on a hill above Platis Gialos at Portes, the stays of a tower with a diameter of three.5 meters have survived. Right here, you’ll discover a colossal historic doorway shaped by two upright granite megaliths topped by a 3rd one.
Nevertheless, probably the most wonderful archaeological discover ever uncovered on the island could also be one the place the feminine factor is unexpectedly highlighted; it may be present in the Archaeological Museum of Mykonos. The “Mykonos Pithos,” a burial jar from 670 BC, stands 1.4 meters tall; it was found in 1961 within the nicely of a Mykonian home. Nineteen distinct scenes on the vessel’s neck and physique narrate the sacking of Troy. Depictions characteristic plenty of feminine protagonists and embody Helen assembly Menelaus; Trojan ladies making an attempt to guard their kids from the frenzy of the Achaeans; the seer Cassandra; Hector’s spouse, Andromache; and different scenes illustrating the horror of conflict in a composition distinctive within the Cyclades.
We lengthen our deep gratitude to Anna Athymariti, president of the Cultural and Folklore Affiliation of Girls of Mykonos, for the knowledge she offered us concerning the position of ladies in Mykonos. Extra info on the affiliation’s work is on the market on its Fb web page.
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