Easter in Florence = Scoppio del carro

We are going to talk about en event which is closely linked with Easter and which is one of the most loved celebration by the Florentines themselves.

The event is called lo Scoppio del carro, or the Explosion of the Cart, it takes place on the morning of Easter Sunday and attracts many tourists from all over the world each year. But the question is: are they aware of what stands behind the event?

Well, this post is particularly dedicated to those who would like to visit the city during Easter holidays and to know something more about the history and tradition of the ceremony, but also to those who have been in Florence and want to remember those moments. So our intent is to give you as much information as we can about the Scoppio del carro, by trying to be concise.

The celebration in a nutshell

On Easter Sunday morning a long parade set in ancient costumes walks across the historic centre of Florence, with flag wavers and drummers. In this parade the Cart is carried by four white oxen to Piazza Duomo and positioned in front of the Cathedral. The cart is loaded with fireworks while a wire, stretching to the high altar inside the cathedral, is fitted with a mechanical dove (the colombina). When the mass is finished, the Bishop of Florence lights the fuse and the colombina flies from the church to the Cart to ignite the fireworks, and the show begins.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back in time

The ceremony is based on the ancient tradition of distributing the “holy” fire to the Florentine people during the Easter Saturday, to symbolize a new beginning. The young adults of the Florentine families went to Cathedral, where the fire burned, and with small torches they brought it home.

The fire was called “holy” because of its genesis: in fact it was created by using three flints coming from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, kept nowadays in the Church of Santi Apostoli. But how did they arrive in Florence?

When it all began

The chronicles tell that at the time of the First Crusade, in 1099, the Florentine nobleman Pazzino de’ Pazzi was at the head of an army composed of about twenty-five hundred men. During the conquest of the city Pazzino was the first man to raise the Christian flag on the walls of Jerusalem and to reward his value, Godfrey of Buillon, who later became the ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, gave him the three flints.

Historians also say that after the liberation of Jerusalem, on the day of Holy Saturday, the Crusaders gathered in the Church of the Resurrection, and by praying, lightened the holy fire as a symbol of purification. From that comes the ritual to distribute the holy fire to the inhabitants of the city of Florence and for a long time the Pazzi family was the custodian of this tradition, as well as responsible for organizing the celebration.

The coming of the cart

Over time the ceremony has changed: by moving from Saturday to Sunday and by introducing the use of a cart and later of the fireworks. It’s not easy to say when these changes were made exactly, but we know that the current cart has been built in the XVII century and that the explosion symbolizes the distribution of the fire to the Florentine families.

The cart is about ten feet high and three wide and on each side it’s designed the emblem of one of the four city districts. Florence inhabitants call it the brindellone, which is a dialect term used for very tall and clumsy men.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The trail of the colombina (the artificial dove)

As well as being the instrument through which the fireworks are turned on, the colombina is for all the Florentines the yardstick of luck in the coming year. The dove takes a double ride, by heading to the cart and then going back to the church and according to tradition the ride must be completed without any problem, otherwise it will be an unlucky year (just think last time it did not happen was 1966 and in November of that year the river Arno overflowed).

As many others, the Explosion of the cart is a tradition that comes from the past and combines the sacred and the profane. There are many other stories you should know about Florence and the best way to do it is to come on a tour with us.

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[Photo credits: lars20070 on Flickr]