Traditional Arts and Crafts Showcase at Pastrengo Historic Courtyards Festival
A step back in time by one hundred years to relive the customs, arts, and trades of our great-grandparents. In Piazza Carlo Alberto, in corte Segattini, corte Gelmetti, and corte Pio Ricovero, today and tomorrow, the second event of the Corti storiche (Historic Courtyards) will take place: an exhibition of arts and crafts, part of the initiatives promoted on the occasion of the 153rd anniversary of the Carabinieri.
Exhibition of ancient arts and crafts
The folkloric group from Cavareno (Trento), composed of 40 costumed performers, will showcase traditional crafts and labor practices from the past in Pastrengo. Visitors will be able to see farmers working with wheat and rye during the threshing process.
The wheat is threshed right on the threshing floor (the «somas») using special correct sticks («fieri») to separate the grains from the rest of the spike. This work was traditionally done collectively, evening after evening: it was an occasion to socialize, get to know each other, and often new romances would blossom.
Once, hay was cut with a sickle, and wheat and rye with a small sickle («siesla»), while «sieslar» was the act of harvesting. Occasionally, these tools needed to be hammered and sharpened on site, a task performed by the elders.
Traditional craftsmanship and tools
When cutting tools needed maintenance, specialized workers would step in: the smith, «el ferar», often itinerant, and the bladesmith, «el moleta», who used his forge and pedal forges to craft new tools for farmers or repair old ones.
A very particular tool is the rake; it requires three types of wood: fir for the handle, beech for the comb’s crossbar, and ash for the tines, involving a meticulous craftsmanship.
For more complex projects, carpenters («el tisler») built furniture, doors, and windows; the «marangon» who constructs roof structures; the «rodar» who prepares cart wheels; or the «pinter» who produces wine barrels.
Skilled artisans also craft baskets and hampers. Many jobs were traditionally female-oriented because everything was handmade at the time — from washing to sewing new clothes.
Modern entertainment and activities
A musical group will perform, capable of reproducing the dances, songs, and nursery rhymes of the past.
Tomorrow, the main attraction will be the parachutists from the ANP d’Italia association, Lazise section, presided over by Marcello Rizzi. The event begins at 4 p.m., with skydiving jumps directed by the regional parachuting school director, Raffaello Venturi, who will oversee touchdowns into the large soccer field adjacent to the Carabinieri barracks.
He is a recently discharged former officer, passionate about parachutes and jumping into the void. Onlookers in Pastrengo will also see a high-profile figure in the parachuting world: Lieutenant Colonel Piero Dal Fiume.
He will serve as the jump director for the event. «It is a source of pride to have among us», Rizzi explains, «Colonel Dal Fiume. He is a key figure in this world, often unknown and sometimes dangerous, bordering on recklessness, yet occasionally indispensable for successful military actions».