EASTER SUNDAY IN CITTA DELLA PIEVE & A STUNNING "LIVE" TABLEAU

Easter weekend turned out to be a cold affair with northerly winds bringing a definite chill to the air and ensuring we needed warm clothing to go outdoors. This was a shame because several events were scheduled for Citta della Pieve which must have been months in the planning and although we are used to such things happening in the UK, we'd hoped it would be a bit better here! On Easter Sunday we decided to mainly stay indoors having had the busy Saturday in Arezzo and Pienza and we only ventured out for a short brisk walk in the afternoon. On Easter Monday, however, we'd made plans to go out for lunch with some friends and when we got up in the morning it was a relief to see clearer skies. It was still bitterly cold though when I went out on to the balcony to stretch my legs.

At about mid day we set off down the narrow alley way at the back of our apartment to meet our pals in the centre of town. Going through the archway we emerged into the hustle and bustle of one of the town's main streets, the Via Vannucci, which was lined with street vendors selling, junk, collectables and crafts. I was immediately taken with one stall selling attractive jewellery including pendants, ear rings and the like, all made from finely plaited wheat stalks combined with polished agates and semi-precious stones. The street was busy with people but everyone was dressed in warm anoraks and woolly coats and hats.

Stalls in the Via Vannucci - Citta della Pieve

Further up in the Piazza Plebiscito the food market started and here was an abundance of stalls selling "artigianale"products from the local area round Lake Trasimeno including cheeses, sausages, pickles, chutneys and preserves and some of the sellers were from much further afield - I couldn't resist tasting some soft, creamy gorgonzola cheese from the Milan area and one of the marzipan fruits from Sicily.

Water converted in to wine - the old iron pump
 in Citta dispensing wine on Easter Monday.

In front of the market hall an old iron pump had been converted to dispense wine rather than water - an old tradition evidently - but we didn't partake preferring to make our way to the Cafe dell Artisti to meet up with Janice and Marcia. Here it was hot cappucinos all round whilst we waited for our other friend Adje to arrive with her three dacschund dogs and the three house guests staying in her bed and breakfast who were from Belgium. Soon we were a party of eight and it was time to head to the Vannucci Hotel next door for our long awaited lunch. The restaurant was packed out with a mixture of locals and visitors but no one minded the wait and we soon settled down to laden plates of lamb chops, beef steaks, grilled chicken and fish all done on the open fired grill at the back of the restaurant  and washed down with the hotel's flavoursome house wine.

Easter lunch in the restaurant at the Hotel Vannucci

When we were all wound up it was 3.30pm and almost time for the highlight of the day - a visit to see the themed tableaux in the undercroft of one of the town's medieval buildings. There was just time left to have a quick look round more of the food stalls, do some tasting and buy a few things to take home.

Janice, Marcia & Adje in front of the
"Made in Umbria" stalls at the Citta Food Fair

Janice buys a cheese from a local supplier

Jon shows off our purchases of "artiginale" products
from the food fair. 

In Citta dell Pieve, as in many Umbrian towns, the community is divided in to quarters or districts known as terzieri - in this case three. One is named the Castello terziera based round the castle, the second Casalino centred on the area round the Palazzo Corgna and the third Borgo Pentro - based on the old part of the town outside the walls. Each year one of the terzieri takes responsibility for organizing the Easter tableaux event and not surprisingly there's an element of competitiveness about it all - the selected terziera attempting, in the best possible way, to outdo its predecessors in terms of the spectacle; there was a small exhibition next to the venue showing photographs of tableaux from years gone by. We were expecting the subject of the tableaux to be based, as it had been in previous years, on scenes from Christ's passion, but this year the organizers had chosen a different theme concerning the subject of local hero Giacomo, so it's worth telling his story here before recounting what we were about to see when the palazzo cellars opened at 4pm.

Giacomo (James) was born in Citta della Pieve in 1270 and not a lot is known about his early life, but as a young man he trained as a lawyer in Sienna returning afterwards to practice in his home town. He regularly worshipped at one of the local churches where one day, according to the legend, he is said to have listened  to a sermon from the New Testament book of Luke where the priest quoted the words of Jesus "he who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple". These words are said to have weighed heavily on Giacomo and in a dream he sees a vision of Jesus calling him to service . He takes the big decision to devote his life to the poor and to use his advocacy experience and skills to protect them from the abuses of the local bullying nobility. Giacomo uses his wealth to convert and renovate an old church and turn the adjacent buildings in to a  hospital providing food, beds and care for the homeless and dispossessed, also encouraging  others to make donations to the cause. The bullying local Bishop from nearby Chiusi attempts to take possession of the hospice and Giacomo again uses his legal experience to appeal to the Roman curia who rule in his favour thus embarrassing the bishop. Angered and humiliated, the bishop hires assassins to kill Giacomo as he makes his way back up the hilly road to Citta della Pieve one dark night in 1304. His body was preserved in the church dedicated to his name. The legend of Giacomo persists in the local area through the centuries and in 1806 Pope Pius IX awarded the title of "Blessed" (one stop short of sainthood) to Giacomo and he has remained one of the town's best known local heroes.

This was the tale commemorated in the 2015 Easter tableau event. We purchased our 2.50 euro tickets from the table outside the door to the palazzo and joined the queue waiting to enter. We were lucky enough to make the first trench of entrants to go down the staircase into the subterranean, cave like interior of the building, because after 15 minutes the individuals taking part in the tableaux can't hold their poses any longer and need a well deserved rest before the next lot of folk are allowed in. Well - I'd written about the local "live" Christmas presepe in previous posts, but this was another thing altogether. I was amazed by the efforts made by this group of local people - men and women of all ages and their children and grand children as well. The sets were dramatic and atmospherically lit by candles as well as discreet spot lights, the costumes beautifully made and the tableaux constructed with amazing props in a series of vaulted recesses each telling an aspect of Giacomo's story. It was stunning and here are a few pictures I managed to take of tableaux form the narrative of "Blessed James the Almoner" from Citta dell Pieve.

Jesus appeals to Giacomo to renounce his
wealth and help the poor

The treating of the sick in Giacomo's hospice

Giacomo appeals for assistance

The assassination of Giacomo in 1304

The sense of drama and theatricality in Italian culture is deeply ingrained - this is after all the country of the innovatory 17th century Roman Baroque, but it's a delight to see it alive and well in local traditions like this one.

It's also manifest in the many summer fiestas to be found in the area  (I've already written about the Arrezzo  jousting festival in the post previous to this one) - so no doubt there's more to come when we visit other traditional gatherings in Umbria and Tuscany. It's a pleasure to visit and recall these events.

KBO & Ciao - Ian

ANTIQUING IN AREZZO - THIS FAMOUS MONTHLY MARKET IS A MUST

It's becoming a habit that we plan our visits to Umbria so they coincide with the first Sunday in the month because that's when the famous antiques market is held in Arezzo which is about an hours drive from our apartment in Citta. We've been several times now and on this trip we had double bubble - Easter weekend in our apartment combined with a trip to the antiques market on Easter Saturday.

Easter Saturday morning meant an early rising at 6am so we could set off and be at the market by 8.30am - not so much to Jon's liking, but he's learned to accept my philosophy that "the early bird gets the worm". We chuckled later on that morning when the telefonino beeped and we got a text from one of our friends out here saying "Are you boys heading out to the Arezzo fair today cos' I'd like to hook up with you if you are." By this time we'd done the fair, had coffee and croissants and were half way to Pienza for lunch, so I had to text back and tell her we'd been and gone. "But it doesn't start till 10am" she texted back and I had to text again to tell her that those in the know would realize that a lot of the buying and selling of the fresh stock had probably been done by the stall holders the night before!!

We drove to Arezzo up the A1 motorway a couple of junctions and duly paid our 3.70 euros toll before taking the main road in to town. There are prettier routes but they are much slower and when you are chasing the bargains they are not the best options. Approaching this city of 100,000 people from this direction, especially for the first time, is slightly off putting as there are miles of sprawl to be encountered with the usual shopping malls, industrial estates and car dealerships lining the
roadway and as I write this the thought that this is another form of "black pathway" enters my head (see previous posting). But don't be put off - if you make the journey what lies ahead is a jewel well worth waiting for.

Aerial View of Arezzo, Tuscany

Arezzo is a city and commune in the province of Tuscany 50 miles SE of Florence and it grew up on a steepish hillside site above the floodplain of the River Arno. It has a long history dating back to Etruscan times when it was an important urban centre and it was also significant to the Romans as a military station on the Via Cassia. Later it would become an episcopal seat and an independent city state between 1098 and 1384 when it was finally conquered by the Florentines who annexed it and make it part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. During later centuries, after the medieval period, it experienced a period of economic decline and this is one of the reasons why it has such a well preserved medieval old town, despite later additions. It's only in the 20th century that modern development has produced the urban sprawl already noted, but that's easily forgotten when the "centro historico" is reached.

If arriving by car its a good idea to follow the signs for the "petrie" car park which lies behind the cathedral and the old town. Here parking is easy and there's an interesting walkway which involves entering the town through the old medieval walls. Part of this experience involves taking a series of escalators which help with the steep climb and this is something I've come across in several Italian towns (Perugia being a good example) and when you are getting older you can't help being appreciative of the thoughtfulness of the commune authorities. I'm glad to say the environmental impact seems minimal. As you ascend some of the covered moving staircases the walls are decorated with well painted murals of ferocious looking armoured and helmeted knights on horseback and with vibrant sets of colours to their clothing. After our first visit I later discovered this was a reference to the famous "GLOSTRA DEI SARACINO" an annual event dating back to medieval times where knighted men wearing colours representing different fraternities relating in different parts of town, competitively charge at a target pinned to a carving of a Saracen king and accumulate points for their accuracy. It's all highly competitive and evidently the whole of the old town is full of folk in medieval dress for the event. https://youtu.be/EB1PEu30Qws

A Knight spears the target at the annual Glostra dei Saracino in Arezzo

Through the gate is the tourist office on the left and then there's a passageway which brings you directly in to the piazza in front of the cathedral and also not far from here is the remains of the old Medici fortress constructed after  Arezzo had become part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany; just a few minutes further down the hill is the Piazza Grande - one of the finest medieval squares anywhere in Italy.

Piazza Grande - Arezzo

The photograph shows just one side of the medieval square and on the left is the columned apse of the 13th century Romanesque church of Santa Maria della Pieve which also has a spectacular massive square bell tower.

There are many famous names associated with Arezzo including the renowned Piero della Francesca who painted in the 15th century the world famous fresco cycle - "the miracle of the true cross" in the church of San Francesco and Arezzo was also the birthplace of Giorgio Vasari, architect, painter, historian and writer, who famously produced one of Europe's first art history books "Artist's Lives" in 1550. The loggia on the north side of the Piazza Grande is by Vasari and here there is a commemorative plaque to Arezzo's most famous son.

Monument to Giorgio Vasari (1511-1574) in Piazza Grande

The Piazza Grande and the narrow streets and squares surrounding it, including the cathedral Piazza, is every month home to Italy's most famous antiques market. Wander the streets and you will come across stalls belonging to up to 500 dealers selling everything from tatty old "shabby chic" furniture to jewellery, ceramics, glass, textiles, old tools, second hand books and prints and just about any other sort of old junk you can think of. The fair was started in 1968 by a local antique dealer and collector called Ivan Bruschi and it was the first of its kind in Italy. Since then its flourished in to probably the best known antiques market in Italy and upwards of 20,000 visitors come here every month to browse and buy and generally soak up the atmosphere of this lively and stimulating event. As well as the stalls there are approximately a further 100 permanent dealers with shops in the vicinity, again selling a variety of stock, many of them with specialist interests and a number focussing on interior design. Some of these are very up market! I like nothing better than to absorb myself in the stalls round the streets of the Piazza Grande and I've come to know one or two dealers whose stock I like to look over and purchase from when we go. There's one kindly lady near the cathedral who has a general stall where, on the wall opposite her pitch, she has boxes of old framed pictures done in a variety of media. Some of them are truly terrible, but sometimes there are a few that are not half bad and already the walls of our Citta apartment are adorned with "original" works of art from her stall including still lifes, landscapes and even a portrait or two. The costs are incredibly modest, 20 to 30 euros is the norm, and this wouldn't even be the price of getting a small picture framed these days. But, as with flea markets the world over, one has to be wary at events like these and its wise to remember the old adage "a fool and his money are easily parted".

Stalls in the square next to the Vasari Loggia - Piazza Grande

Dealers these days, in London, Paris or here in Italy, find it harder and harder to get decent quality stock at good prices and fairs like the Arezzo one are not the treasure troves that perhaps they once were 20 years ago. Arezzo is as much a tourist event these days as it is a dealer's fair. There is an awful lot of reproduction material for sale here (just as there is now in the Portobello Road in London) much of it imported from the far east and a lot of it with a distressed look to appear old; the unwary can easily be deceived. The message is to be careful. Consider the prices being asked and if you know something is a good buy then go ahead. Similarly, if you are looking for decorative pieces, there are loads of bargains to be had in Arezzo which are often cheaper than the prices that you would pay in a shop. Talk and chat with the dealers and form your own opinion and haggle over the price. It's best to go home and be delighted with what you have purchased than to have to repent at leisure.

Examining an object on a dealer's stall

And I know what you are wanting to ask now. What did I purchase on this particular trip? Well - it was a modest spend this time round. I spent 20 euros on a large, rather dark, still life painting from my usual stall - I still haven't got round to cleaning it and putting it on the wall. I also bought a small ebony oval shaped ladies' nail buffer in a charming leatherette case with its original price written in ink on the bottom. It dates from the elegant belle epoque period of the early 20th century and its a charming little collectable. It cost 5 euros.That was it - 25 euros in total. Was I disappointed?- I would never say that and we have no regrets about spending our day there. If the fair was weekly and I lived here all the time I would be there every Saturday - (not sure about Jon though - I somehow doubt he would show the same enthusiqasm)!!

Oh - I discovered later in the day that our friend Elin had turned up at the fair and bought a dated 1957 brass tuba which she haggled down from 120 euros to 80 to give to her fiance's son who is learning to play brass instruments back home in Canada. At dinner that evening she refused the invitation to appear here so this is me attempting to give it a blast!!!

Me playing the tuba found
 at the Arezzo antiques market in April 2015

KBO - IAN

WHEN IS THE FAIR?
The fair is held in the old town of Arezzo every first Sunday of the month and the Saturday before.


HOW TO GET THERE?
By train - most of the stopping trains between Florence and Rome and vice versa call at Arezzo. the old town is a 10 minute walk from the station.

By road - take the Arezzo junction from the A1 toll motorway between Florence and Rome and its a 15 minute drive to the car park identified in the text. Google maps will help you find the Pietri car park.

THE SARACEN JOUST
This takes place every year on the last Saturday in June in the evening and on the first Sunday in September in the afternoon. Tickets are necessary. You can see it "in action" on U tube! Check the web site.