Preko laundresses "Naša mati" (Our Mother)

Lavandijere was the name for the laundresses from Preko who used to earn for living and secure their families’ existence by doing the laundry for the Zadar noblemen up to the 60ies of the 20th century. The women from Preko were known as the neatest and most meticulous, and no one was nearly as skilful as they were in their work. They used to wash clothes at a vrulja (a spring) – a place by the coast where water springs up. They mastered the traditional way of washing the clothes in lušija, then they would rinse them, dry and iron (sumprešati). Lušija is a solution of ash and hot water used for washing clothes in the past. Sometimes, women also washed their hair with it because it would make their hair shiny. On All Souls’ Day, on 2 November 1891, 16 laundresses from Preko lost their lives when their boat overturned in a stormy sea not far from the islet of Galevac. They were of different age from girls, pregnant women to old ladies. It was a huge tragedy for the entire village because every house in Preko was somehow related to at least one of the dead laundresses. The anniversary of this accident is still commemorated today and the sculptor Anselmo Dorkin created a monument to the honour of the laundresses called “Our Mother”.