ENHANCED BY A HOLY FIRE
 Florence
takes you back to the ancient Crusade of 1099, the celebration of
which culminated in the Easter festival of the Scoppi del Carro
or the Explosion of the Cart. The history of one of the most fascinating
festivals of Florence leads to the story of its origins. Pazzino
de Pazzi, a Florentine nobleman scaled the walls of Jerusalem with
the flag of the Crusaders that signified the winning of the Holy
Sepulchre from the infidels. After the victory over the infidels
on Holy Saturday, Jerusalem celebrated by giving everyone the holy
fire to purify themselves and their homes. Pazzi’s courage
was acknowledged by Goffredo di Buglione, the commander and the
leader of the Crusade, with stone splinters from the Holy Sepulchre.
 Pazzi
shared his triumph with the citizens of Florence by giving them
the splinters. As a revered and popular festival, the Scoppi del
Carro or the Explosion of the Cart, was honored by striking a flame
with the holy splinters. The youth of the city and the families
carried torches lit by the splinters from the cathedral and took
it on a long procession around the city. This was held on June 24th
changed over time to March 27th, on the feast of Saint John with
fireworks replacing the torch. The cart that carried the holy fire
eventually evolved to that of the Cart of Saint John built like
a tower. The Florentines nicknamed the cart as the ‘Brindellone’
structured to catch fire in the square between the Baptistery and
the Cathedral. The three-level cart was structured 10 meters high,
4 meters wide with a 3 meter base. The cart was built with four
tiers that would hold children with a man dressed in skins to resemble
a saint who stood at the top of tower. The Guild of Merchants chose
a poor man for this occasion and paid him 10 lire. Standing at the
top, the man would eat, drink and distribute sweetmeats and coins
that would bring the crowd around the Cart to grab whatever was
thrown down.
 Bedecked
in an elaborate fashion with colorful fireworks, the Brindellone
pulled by two white oxen with golden horns starts as a celebration
for Easter from the church of the SS Apostoli to the Piazza del
Duomo. As soon as the cart reaches the square, the oxen are freed
from it. A wire is attached to the cart which ranges all the way
to the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. From the Cathedral there
is a wire which is attached to a mechanical white dove which is
rigged like a fire rocket. The fire rocket is actually the dove
or the colombina which is the symbol of peace. After a tranquil
Midday Easter Mass, the Archbishop lights the dove-shaped rocket
from the Holy Fire from the Holy Sepulchre at the High Altar. The
dove-like fuse once lit takes off with accurate speed to the Cart
which in turn lights up the fire crackers. The Cart burns to the
ground in a colorful melee of sound, sight and shades. But the Tuscans
firmly believe that if the cart burns with brilliance to the last
firework, then all’s well with their world and that their
harvest will be plentiful.
With the firm belief that if the Cart burns right down then their
lives will be enriched and their harvest would be plentiful. Lighting
up their lives with the sacred fire, the Florentines have kept their
tradition and their rituals alive to this day.
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