NEWS - The Florentine

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Life in Italy
17
Thursday 30 June 2005
Culture & CUSTOMS
Behind the scenes at The Palio
By Nicky Swallow
“Il Palio’ is in Siena’s
blood and plays
just as significant a
part in the life of the
city today as it did
centuries ago.”
The famously insular little city
of Siena is a fascinating place
full of beautiful buildings and
artistic treasures; it is also home to
one of Italy’s most glorious squares,
the fan-shaped Piazza del Campo
which provides the theatrical backdrop
to the annual Palio. Millions
of tourists descend on the city each
year, but relatively few realise that
Siena leads a double life and getting
to grips with the whole issue
of ‘contrada culture’ is something
that for an outsider often remains
elusive. The majority of visitors who
pile into the Campo on two sweltering
summer afternoons each year
(July 2 nd and August 16 th ) to watch
the world’s most famous bareback
horse race probably believe that
the whole show is put on for their
benefit, but they couldn’t be more
wrong. ‘Il Palio’ is in Siena’s blood
and plays just as significant a part
in the life of the city today as it did
centuries ago. A great historic event,
it’s a very human one too, sweeping
up the whole community on an
intoxicating wave of excitement and
tension. To begin to understand the
Palio, you must also gain insight as
to how the contradas work.
The Palio takes its name from the
banner of the Virgin Mary awarded
to the winner of each race. As a first
step towards some kind of comprehension,
it is important to realise
that the contests are not mere sporting
events, but rather a settling of
old scores played out between Siena’s
17 contrade or districts. These
well-defined neighbourhoods were
once self-governing but now have a
predominantly social, but nonetheless
hugely important role. Each has
its own mascot (mostly, but not exclusively,
an animal; tortoise, goose,
porcupine, owl, panther, wave, shell
and so on), its own patron saint, flag,
colours, museum, chapel and fountain.
Each holds its own baptisms,
weddings and funerals. If you are
born within the city’s old walls, you
automatically become a member of
the relevant contrada, but membership
can also be inherited, a system
which applies to the majority of the
Sienes who live in the modern suburbs.
A visit to one of the contrada
museums is a good place to start if
Painting by Cathy Gale
you are interested in finding out a
bit more about contrada culture; it’s
also fun to wander round the quiet
back streets and look out for little
clues betraying your whereabouts,
from charming ceramic animal
plaques mounted on street corners
to animal fountains tinkling away in
quiet squares.
Superficially, all this seems very
quaint, but old rivalries are not easily
forgotten (resentment between
the winning team and the runners
up will last until the following year),
and the days leading up to each race
see an intense period of complicated
preparation and a palpable build up
of tensions all over the city. Within
households with different contrada
members, this can lead to major
practical problems; cross-contrada
couples are not supposed to share
the same bed or even to sleep under
the same roof immediately before
the races.
Most visitors to Siena in pre-race
days will not be aware of all this
rumbling tension, but it’s certainly
impossible to ignore Palio fever and
outsiders can join in many of the festivities
most of which take place on
the four days preceeding each race.
The ‘tratta’, a ballot to assign horses
to the 10 contrade that will be represented
in the race takes place in the
Campo at 12.30 of the first day; the
contrade must then go off and find
the right jockey to whom they will
pay vast sums of money to secure a
win by fair means or foul. Six trial
races are held in the Campo, the
most important of which is the dress
rehearsal in the late afternoon of the
third day. After this, Siena sits down
to dinner at a series of huge al fresco
banquets, held in the streets of the
various contrade to which outsiders
are welcome. Book in advance and
be prepared for mountains of food,
rivers of wine and lots of boisterous
speechmaking and singing. In
complete contrast is the blessing of
the horses which takes place on the
two days of the Palio itself at around
2.30pm in the respective contrada
chapels. These ceremonies are silent
and intimate; it’s possible to gain access
with a combination of luck and
being at the right place at the right
time.
The two hours of pageantry in the
Campo that precede each race is, of
course, open to all. The Sienese turn
out in force to watch the procession
of local big-wigs, flag-throwers
and musicians all dressed in period
garb. Sporting their relevant colours,
the contrade stick together,
their whistles and singing reaching
fever pitch as the start of the race
approaches. Everything is over in
a flash; ninety seconds (three times
round the square) of hysterical excitement
culminating in tears of joy
and despair from men, women and
children who have spent the whole
year building up to this moment.
Needless to say, the celebrations by
the winning contrada continue all
night with yet another huge street
banquet at which the horse takes
pride of place at the head of the
table.
To avoid four hours standing in
the Campo itself under the baking
sun (although this is probably
the best way to experience the raw
emotions of the Palio first hand),
you need to plan well ahead. For
the best close up view, a seat in one
of the wooden ‘palchi’ on ground
level is recommended (this will
cost from around €200-€350), but
to watch in comfort, rent an apartment
with a balcony on the piazza
and make sure it comes complete
with cocktail waiter.
Contact the Siena tourist office
(Piazza del Campo 56,
0577 280551)
for further information.