  What's New! Detailed Sitemap All images © by Roberto Piperno, owner of the domain. Write to romapip@quipo.it. Text edited by Rosamie Moore. |  Days of Peace (how to spend a peaceful day in Rome)  to Marino for the "Sagra dell'Uva"
The weather at the beginning of this month was mild and fine. (J. W. Goethe - Italian Journey - Frascati - October 1787).
Guidebooks are useful tools for visiting a place, but for this excursion it may be better to charge an iPod with a couple of popular Roman songs: ' Na gita a li Castelli written in 1925 and Arrivederci Roma written in 1955: the latter was recorded by Perry Como, Ray Charles, Connie Francis, Mario Lanza, Dean Martin and many others, but the English translation does not have references to the Castelli. As soon as the road starts climbing the hills one sees extensive vineyards: their wine is usually called Frascati and in general all Roman restaurants call the wine they serve from the cask Frascati.
The traditional iconography of Autumn portrayed this season as a not so young woman holding a cornucopia, the symbol of abundance.
The imposing gateway to one of the first farms flanking the road to Marino is an early clue as to the reason for this outing to Marino: the re-enactment of Marcantonio II Colonna's 1571 triumphal procession celebrating his return from the victorious battle of Lepanto. The elaborate coat of arms of the Colonna family is decorated with the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece, the highest Spanish award and with the double-headed eagle of the Austrian Emperors; a small coat of arms of Pope Pius V indicates that Marcantonio Colonna was the captain general of the papal fleet. The name of the farm is a historic reference to a fight which occurred at the farm between the supporters of Pope Urban VI and those of the French antipope Clement VII.
In the 1920s with the dual intent of promoting the local wine and of celebrating Marcantonio Colonna, the municipality of Marino organized the first Sagra dell'Uva which met with great success. The battle of Lepanto took place on October 7 and the Fair is scheduled for the first October Sunday: the event spans several days. .. preparations were going forward (at Ariccia) for a local festival and the village carpenter was hanging certain mouldy strips of crimson damask. It might have been of the seventeenth century and a group of peasant-women were seeing it unfurled with evident awe. (Henry James - Italian Hours). The tradition of decorating the buildings is not gone: for the occasion references to the Colonna are mixed with those to winemaking and the heraldic column of the family is surrounded by grapes (as shown in the image used as background for this page).
Ponte Squarciarelli is a very small bridge at the junction of roads leading to Rome, Frascati, Grottaferrata, Marino and Rocca di Papa: the local inn and many other trattoria of the Castelli are known for their fettuccine, a fresh pasta made of egg and flour: the image shows "fettuccine alla papalina" (the pope's way) with ham and peas.
Bartolomeo Pinelli (1781-1835), a Roman engraver, illustrated in his works the ordinary life of the Romans, their pastimes and their quarrels. Whether those were "good ol' times" is highly debatable. According to tradition he died because he had drunk too much wine.
At all fairs and popular festivals in Rome and its countryside, you cannot miss seeing stalls selling slices of porchetta, a small pork which is roasted whole, heavily salted and stuffed with spices. It is a traditional product of Ariccia (you can see another porchetta stall at Festa de' Noantri).
Although Marcantonio Colonna returned from the war in December, the main event of Sagra dell'Uva is the procession celebrating that event: The great commander arrives from outside Marino while the family, the servants and the people of Marino move out of the Colonna palace (today the Town hall). They meet at Fontana dei Mori and then cross the town to go back to the palace. Yellow and black were the colours of the German emperor's flag (a black eagle on a yellow background): the flag-bearers had an actual role during battles; they gave signals to the fighters.
A local association takes care of the organization of the procession and of the design of the costumes. These are based on paintings and other records of the Colonna family (you may wish to have a look at their website).
The mother of Marcantonio was a granddaughter of a king of Naples and her marriage into the Colonna was an indication of the strong ties this family had with the Spanish lords of Naples; Marcantonio's marriage too had a political purpose: Colonna and Orsini had fought for centuries and even during the pontificate of Pope Sixtus IV (1471-1484) their enmity led to open warfare. His marriage with Felice Orsini di Bracciano was an indication that past rivalries had come to an end.
In the Colonna Gardens in Rome there is a monument celebrating Marcantonio: he was portrayed as an ancient Roman commander with a very serious look: with this image in mind it is rather surprising to see a Marcantonio waving and smiling to all the pretty women of Marino: one feels he is watching Verdi's Rigoletto and that the actor is rather playing the Duke of Mantua while singing "Questa o quella" (external link). Marcantonio was 36 in 1571 and the man in the procession looks quite right from an age point of view: maybe E. M. Forster would have written of him what he wrote about much younger Gino Carella (Where Angels Fear to Tread): "Philip had seen that face before in Italy a hundred times - seen it and loved it, for it was not just merely beautiful, but had the charm which is the rightful heritage of all who are born on that soil. It was not the face of a gentleman." Marcantonio Colonna was appointed Viceroy of Sicily (1577-84) and then called at the court of King Philip II of Spain: shortly after he suddenly died at Medinaceli: the Colonna thought he had been poisoned.
The day ends with a general drink at the fountains of Marino which for the occasion pour white wine: for practical reasons the action is handled by using long hoses. You can have large bottles filled if you so wish; local dessert grapes are also given for free. The fair is closed by fireworks. Other Days of Peace pages: At the Flea Market At the Beach A Sunny Day in Villa Borghese Voicing Your Views ..... and feeling better La Festa de Noantri A visit to Roseto di Roma Christmas in Rome Finding Solace at the Protestant Cemetery Eating Outdoors Celebrating the Foundation of Rome Watching the Parade Attending 2007 July Events Rome's Sleepless Night Attending Winter Ceremonies Running the Rome Marathon Jogging at Valle delle Camene Sailing on the River Attending a Funeral ...and enjoying it! A Special Spring Weekend Embassy-hunting in Parioli Celebrating Eritrean Michaelmas in Rome Visiting Rome at Dawn Visiting Rome in the Moonlight Visiting Rome on a Hop-on-Hop-off Bus Visiting Multi-ethnic Rome |
