Marie Bashkirtsef in Ukrainian traditional dress

n 1876, after 10 years in Europe, 17-year-old Marie Bashkirtseff visited her homeland and relatives with great joy, remembering her childhood. She stayed in Havrontsi, Chernyakivtsi, and the estate of Prince Serhiy Kochubey, leader of the Poltava nobility, in Dykantsi. She tried on and described the national outfit: "Everyday Ukrainian clothes consist of a coarse cloth shirt with wide, rolled-up sleeves, embroidered in red and blue, and a black homemade cloth wrapped from the waist down. The shorter garment reveals the shirt's embroidered edge. The cloth is held by a multicolored wool belt, with necklaces around the neck and ribbons in braided hair. I had a suit made and wore it to the village, accompanied by our people." The photo was taken by famed photographer I. Khmelevskyi in Poltava.