Sicilian colours for my 200th post....
The traditional Sicilian cart is always painted with bright colours such as yellow, red, green, orange, gold and silver, and it’s decorated with drawings representing scenes from the French paladins tradition, history, chronicle, mythology, typical Sicilian characters, landscapes and symbols of Sicily itself. The four-footed animal which draws the cart is dressed up, adorned with feathers, plumes, red fringes and golden trinkets, silver cowbells, crowns and brightly coloured fabrics.
Sicilian carts are now to be found only in museums, in parades of village fairs, and in souvenir shops. Today it’s more and more uncommon to see an originally handcrafted cart, as very few masters carry on this work, and they do it for a market niche. Some panels adorn sitting rooms or stalls during festivals. The Sicilian cart, therefore, is merely relegated to a decorative function, yet it is one of the most meaningful and explicit symbols of the Sicilian land.
Other shots present on TE:
Giorgio Giacosa
Orazio Minnella
Angelo Nardo
See WS for a cart captured in Alcamo castle.