Kos Bed Tent Panel

Bed tents, or sperveri, are peculiarly Dodecanese. They are constructed of numerous panels, mostly embroidered and they taper toward the top, with valances front top and bottom. Their purpose ,of course, is to shield from flying insects. The decoration is also uniquely Dodecanese, featuring rows, vertical and horizontal, of flower pots, or glastras, that are large, compact and contained. Rhodes and Kos, two of the bigger Dodecanese Islands, have similar bed tents, the difference mainly in the stitchwork which is heavy cross stitch in Rhodes and fine single darning stitch in Kos.