Karpathos is the second, after Rhodes, biggest island of the Dodecanese complex.  It is lying in the middle of the sea named after it, between islands of Rhodes and Crete.  King Proteas was born in Karpathos, Olympian Goddess Athena was raised there and Prometheus who offered humanity the fire after stealing it from Olympian Gods lived some years of his life.

Although Karpathos has never been inhabited by Turkish during Greece’s conquest by Ottomans, it did contribute to the National War for Independence that started in 1821 offering its land to refugees and granting money to the Greek warriors and to the Greek ships’ repair.  Italians occupied the island in 1912 and Germans did so in 1943 throughout the World War II.  After Germans left in October 1944, inhabitants rebelled against Italians and finally managed to be liberated on the 17^th of October 1944.

Karpathos is a place full of lore especially religious ones connected to the Greek Orthodox Church.  “Seven” is one of the oldest and most remarkable.  It is about the 7^th day after a baby is born when relatives and friends uninvited pay a visit to the newborn’s family bringing gifts and sweets.  The infant’s either mother or grandmother, dress them up with father’s shirt if the baby is boy and mother’s shirt if it is a girl, then the baby is rest and swing into a silken sheet as attendees lullaby all around.  After the singing, either the mother or the grandmother lights up 7 candles naming them after Virgin Mary, Jesus Christ and the Saints that protect the island’s villages.  Everybody in the room prays and watches which candle will go out first because this will be the baby’s protector for the rest of their life.  At the same time, in the house’s kitchen, women bake the traditional sweet of “alevra”.  Everybody in the house will have 7 bites and what’s left, will stay there to be eaten by the Moires that will set newborn’s destiny on that 7^th night of their life.

Number 7 is representing the new life on the island of Karpathos and it is our specific Collection’s leading element.  Colors, florins and elaborate shapes on traditional costumes, inspired us to create “Karpathos”.  Find the fire in you… follow Karpathos’ collection!

We would like to express our deepest gratitude to those who contributed to Karpathos’ photo shooting. Once again it was a great experience!