The Befana and the Bonfire by sandra46
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Description
Here you can see the bonfire from St. Justina's church: it's huge and there's an old hag on it. On January 6th , the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of the Epiphany. In many countries it's also called the feast of the Three Kings. It's also the 12th night but to Italians this day is also the Feast of the Befana. This old lady is very much like Santa Claus and St Lucy (on Dec. 5th). This tradition dates back to the 13th century. Befana is descended from the Sabine/Roman goddess named Strina, and her solemnities were vigorously opposed by the early Christians on account of their noisy, riotous, and licentious character, until the church transformed them.The Befana is celebrated throughout Italy; she has become a national icon,with policemen in motobike disguised as Befanas to give gifts to children, but it’s in Marche, Umbria and Lazio, three regions once part of the Papal States, where the Epiphany held the most importance. The Roman origin of the Befana is hinted at in this nursery rhyme I remember:
La Befana comes by night
With her shoes old and broken
She comes dressed in the Roman way
Long life to the Befana!
(La Befana vien di notte
Con le scarpe tutte rotte
Col vestito alla romana
Viva, Viva La Befana!)
This tradition had been conflated by the Church with that of our region, the New Year's Bonfire, of Celtic origin, and still very popular. The Celts occupied Northern Italy as far as Verona, and parts of northeastern Veneto, but the bonfire was also popular with the Venets occupying the central part of the region. More about it in the next post.
Thank you for your kind comments.
Comments (53)
DarkStormCrow
Cool shot and story, well done...
claude19
SPLENDID histiory...GREAT SHOT !!! Wonderful idea !!!
flora-crassella
interesting information and photo!!!
brycek
Wonderful capture and story!!
lyron
Excellent image!!
Faemike55
Great shot and wonderful history lesson
Thetis
very impressing! it must be raging hot and bright when it burns. fantastic photo and as always very interesting information
jmb007
belle histoire et photo!!
West_coaster07
Very nice!!
Amosicho
Wonderful capture and story
bazza
Lovely capture well done Sandra thats one big bonfire heap..
Digitaleagle
Excellent capture, awesome detailed info, thanks for sharing a little history about the shot!
drifterlee
That's really interesting!!!!!
Miska7
Very nice scene and information! Great capture!
magnus073
What a splendid photo Sandra and I am so thrilled you shared the story of this tradition as I had no idea but was happy to learn it.
MOSKETON
FANTASTIC. FELIZ 2010.
bmac62
Huge bonfire...particularly at the zoom level:) Alway appreciate the local history included. Good job Sandra.
MrsLubner
I have heard bits and pieces of this celebration but nothing so well told as this. I did not realize it was a popular celebration of even a very widespread one. Here we do nothing in recognition other than a mention in some circles. I like your postwork here and the capture is moody - like the day.
mermaid
So wonderfully told, Sandra and fascinating to me...the shot is also very very nice and well composed
tennesseecowgirl
Nice capture, and interesting to read about this.
jocko500
wonderful history I learn here on this art site. cool swhot
blondeblurr
Interesting tradition, have you also got a photo of it burning ? (and no, I am not a pyromaniac) nice postwork, BB
Minda
beautiful capture and great story sandra.
mgtcs
Wonderful shot, excellent place and photo!
psyoshida
Fascinating history and beautiful photo. I love the postwork it looks like a lovely old painting. Well done.
lucindawind
fabulous info love the photo !
JSGraphics
Awesome! Well Done!
anahata.c
Amazing lore & amazing deep roots! I looked up this bonfire on the web, but didn't find a lot in the time I had: Is the hag Befana herself? I was confused whether the hag is being destroyed in the fire, or if it's Befana riding aloft like a spirit? If it's the former--ie, burning an 'old hag' as a symbol of burning the year--then it seems like another female identified with darkness & the unwanted. Common enough in lore, but equally terrible. If it's Befana, I assume she's venerated in the flame! Whatever it is, it's a deep & rich collection of lore for us, and wonderful stuff to accompany your photo. That's a huuuuuuuuge bonfire! I wonder how long it burns: It must light up the entire neighborhood. And as for the Celtic roots, I was vaguely familiar with the Celtic bonfire, but didn't know that the Celts had occupied Northern Italy. I know that the Church took over many of these festivals & greatly modified them to fit their vision: It's always wonderful to see these ceremonies survive, no matter which culture took them over, because they capture something so essential about us. And Befana sounds like a great, joyous old lady very similar to santa claus, and I'd love to meet her! Thanks for bringing back these essential legends & sprinkling them into our days. I'll look forward to the next installment! (That's such a big bonfire, I can't get over its size!)
0rest4wicked
Nice image and always enjoy your narrative.
wysiwig
Fascinating history! This looks like a huge Christmas tree. I hope we get to see it lit up. Excellent capture.