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Scoppio del Carro ("Explosion Cart") between Cathedral and Bapistery

After using up about a month of our planned three months in Florence, we realised that we couldn't possibly see everything we wanted to in just three months and so extended for a fourth month. That meant that we would be in Florence in April, and that meant also over Easter. According to our guide books, the really big Easter event was the Scoppio del Carro, or "Explosion of the Cart", an event that goes back over five centuries and that happens on Easter Sunday. We marked it in our calendar, finally the day arrived, and, rather than forgetting, off we went.

Men in 15th century costumes leading the cart to the cathedral

Each troop out does the previous

And again

The events that lead up to the scoppio begin with a parade from the Piazzale di Porta al Prato to the Piazza del Duomo. Unfortunately, but as we've learned is to be expected, we didn't find that out until after the parade was over: Even though we knew there would be a parade we just didn't know anything about where and when it started and what route it would take. A search of the Internet didn't help and buying the local Florence paper didn't either. (We usually buy a national paper but we were hoping that, as the very accommodating Berlin papers always did, the locals would provide a map and times. No such luck.)

We set out from our apartment around 9 a.m., hoping to arrive early enough to stumble onto something. Our trip from Gavinana was an easy one as our usual bus, number 23, has a stop just two blocks from the Duomo. When we got to the Piazza del Duomo we found that the barriers were already set up on either side of the area between the Duomo and the Baptistry, and that people lined them one-deep. Jan elected to take a place in the second row and wait for things to happen; that turned out to be a great choice since she had a wonderful view of all the things that subsequently did happen, but of course she had to stand in one place for more than two hours. Gerry, with his bad knee, wasn't going to stand around for two hours so he went off to see if he could find the parade.

Between us we saw it all: Gerry found that as he was approaching the Piazza della Repubblica the parade was approaching him. Besides capturing it in his memory he got about 20 good photos and some good video footage.

The Parade Members and the Crowd

Less than ten minutes later the parade arrived at the Piazza del Duomo where Jan saw it arrive, almost feeling that it was dumping itself into her lap. The arriving paraders, all in their colorful mediaeval costumes, paraded around the square. After a complete circuit they arranged themselves neatly on the steps in front of the Duomo, their role in the proceedings mostly over. Those with instruments continued to entertain the crowd, and once or twice those carrying flags would jump out and entertain us with their flag-twirling skills.

White Oxen and Scoppio Carro heading to Duomo

The Carro in place, it is unwrapped

The Carro with Fireworks on the Ground

Having seen the mediaeval troups Gerry noticed that not everybody was leaving Piazza della Repubblica. To save his knee and expecting something more, he sat down to wait. In a few minutes he was rewarded: Coming at a very fast pace, a pace so fast the the accompanying humans has to almost trot in order to keep up, was the 500 year old decorated carro, drawn by two pairs of enormous white oxen. Each ox sported a fine pair of horns, between which sat a flowered headdress.

Gerry trotted along with the oxen half way from Piazza della Repubblica to the Duomo. Then he relaxed a bit to observe the true end of the parade, which consisted of something that surely wasn't available in the 14th or 15th century: a mechanical street cleaner accompanied by a crew in irridescent green work uniforms that would have impressed the Medicis as much as their clothes impress us. When they had passed there was not a hint of any organic matter that the oxen may have (inadvertently) left behind.

Jan, having been on the barriers all along, saw the arrival of the carts — a spectacle that almost equalled that of the costumed troops. The oxen and cart also did a turn about the square, but this time with some difficulty. The drivers had mis-judged the turning circle of the oxen and had to unhitch the front pair to avoid trampling the revelers on the steps of the Duomo! Behind the cart came two handcarts pushed by women in peasant dress, piled high with flowers and olive branches. Then the oxen were unhitched and preparations began for the fireworks. This involved attaching five or six wooden bars to each of the four sides of the cart. Each bar carried fire-crackers. Heavier bars were set on the ground around the cart and a group of peasant-attired volunteers carried buckets of sand to sprinkle around them.

Having seen the street sweepers Gerry then went back to the north side of the Bapistry thinking very naively that he'd find a place near the barriers. Obviously, no such luck. For a long time the crowd had been growing as more and more people tried to see what was going on. In every building that ajoined or over looked the square Jan could see that every window was filling up with spectators.

Gerry saw what he could from the rear and took some photos, having been helped up onto a fountain base by a kind soul. Then he went to the Duomo and discovered it was open so in he went. Rather than finding a service going on he discovered that the center aisle was enclosed by a set of barriers. Above this aisle was strung a long wire that would be extended right to the carro. When the time came a mechanical dove would be primed and sent traveling down the wire and set off the fire works. All Gerry had to do was wait and wait he could, including sitting down.

Most of Gerry's time inside the Duomo was spent taking pictures. We'd been there once before, to attend a Sunday morning mass; in our early weeks in Florence we went about four times and got a good feel of how these marvelous churches were meant to be used. After perhaps half an hour Gerry saw a group of about 25 priests forming into a line: He had just enough time to get in position to photograph them as they marched out of the church into the square.

Priests returning to the Duomo after Bapistery service

The Bishop Blessing the Crowd

For Jan the next bit of excitement was when a coterie of priests crossed from Duomo to the Baptistry. They were preceded by church aids carrying huge candlesticks and candles. Shortly thereafter, loudspeakers in the square started broadcasting the service that was being held in the Baptistry — by, for, and to priests and a select number of important guests. In the meantime preparations were continuing for the fireworks, with ladders being set against each side of the cart in turn, and a fireman climbing up to attach the last fuse wires. The most important attachment had already been done, the cart had been attached to a wire that ran into the cathedral and along which a "dove" would fly to set the display off.

At the end of the service, the priests emerged from the Baptistry, with the Bishop in his purple scull-cap leading the way. He walked over to the cart, blessed it on all four sides and then blessed the crowd on each side of the square and the parade members still standing on the steps. Having blessed one and all, the bishop and the rest of the priests paraded into the main Cathedral, where Jan lost sight of them and Gerry was waiting.

When Gerry saw them coming back into the Duomo he realized that the main service must have taken place outside, either in the Square or Bapistery. Just after the procession went by him apparently all was ready: Off went the dove, flying by him and out into the light. He had no chance of seeing the first spark but he lost no time in getting outside to see as many of the fireworks as he could.

The Fountain of Fire

Sparks ahoy

The danger was real: it was in our laps

Finally, the coup de grace arrived: the dove came flying down the wire, ignited the fuse and the first set of firecrackers went off in sequence all around the cart. Next came the colored smoke bombs, enveloping the whole crowd where Jan was standing in a red fog. Next came more firecrackers, catherine wheels, fountains, rockets, more firecrackers, and then finally the circle on top started twirling and three flags carrying the emblems of Florence unfurled, a final explosion, and the noise and excitement was all over.

Scoppio de Carro Dénouement

Danger over, the crowds want to get close

And then there was a relatively long dénouement: The word litterally means "untying" or "unknoting" and that's what happened. The costumed troups marched out, but slowly because the crowd was so big. And the crowd tried to disperse itself but could only do that slowly because there were so many other people behind those wanting to leave. And many of those behind, Gerry included, wanted to get to the front before the cart left, and see it up close. So there was calm chaos for some minutes and then, neither the first nor the last, we left.

Lo Scoppio del Carro

Pazzi of Florence, knight of noble line,
Brought from Jerusalem a holy stone
Broke from the sepulchre, and it was shown
To the devout how this might be a sign

Of the kind providence of the divine
Ruler of all. And so it soon was known
That when its sacred fire had safely flown
Harvests would ripen, grain and fruit and wine.

So, at the Easter-time, a snow-white dove
Bears from the altar consecrated light
Into a car that kindles into flame,

Thus bringing down good fortune from above.
Drawn through the city by four oxen white,
The people hail this car with glad acclaim.


Source: Sonett Central