Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy

The Festa della Chinea, which roughly translates as ‘Festival of the Wandering Nag’, was a historic festival held in Rome bi-annually until the late 18th century (1788), in which the viceroy of the Kingdom of Naples was required to pay his homage to the pope. This entailed, among other things, the o...

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Main Author: Temple, Nicholas
Format: Book Section
Language:English
Published: Routledge 2018
Subjects:
Online Access:https://repository.londonmet.ac.uk/5896/1/FestadellaChinea_BookChap.docx
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author Temple, Nicholas
author_facet Temple, Nicholas
author_sort Temple, Nicholas
collection LMU
description The Festa della Chinea, which roughly translates as ‘Festival of the Wandering Nag’, was a historic festival held in Rome bi-annually until the late 18th century (1788), in which the viceroy of the Kingdom of Naples was required to pay his homage to the pope. This entailed, among other things, the offering of a white horse (‘nag’) that formed part of a procession through the streets of Rome. The destination of the procession was the Basilica of St Peters, where the horse was traditionally allowed to roam within the basilica before finally being guided to the cathedra of the pontiff for a formal blessing. The peculiarity of this festival has never really been properly explained. By the early 18th century it gave rise to the most elaborate ephemeral constructions in the city, culminating in a huge firework display in the Piazza Farnese, the location of the embassy of the Bourbon Kingdom of Naples and Sicily from the late 17th century. In this paper, I will examine the Festa della Chinea in the context of the tradition of festivals in Rome, tracing changes in the symbolic and ceremonial meanings of these extravagant events with specific focus on equine and water symbolism. As one of the oldest festivals in Rome, which was held annually over a period of about 600 years, the Festa della Chinea provides a rich source of material about how such events were celebrated and understood, both by the organisers and the spectators.
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spelling oai:repository.londonmet.ac.uk:58962020-07-24T19:47:22Z https://repository.londonmet.ac.uk/5896/ Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy Temple, Nicholas 200 Religion 230 Christianity & Christian theology 270 History of Christianity & Christian church 290 Other religions 700 The arts; fine & decorative arts 710 Civic & landscape art 720 Architecture 740 Drawing & decorative arts 750 Painting & paintings The Festa della Chinea, which roughly translates as ‘Festival of the Wandering Nag’, was a historic festival held in Rome bi-annually until the late 18th century (1788), in which the viceroy of the Kingdom of Naples was required to pay his homage to the pope. This entailed, among other things, the offering of a white horse (‘nag’) that formed part of a procession through the streets of Rome. The destination of the procession was the Basilica of St Peters, where the horse was traditionally allowed to roam within the basilica before finally being guided to the cathedra of the pontiff for a formal blessing. The peculiarity of this festival has never really been properly explained. By the early 18th century it gave rise to the most elaborate ephemeral constructions in the city, culminating in a huge firework display in the Piazza Farnese, the location of the embassy of the Bourbon Kingdom of Naples and Sicily from the late 17th century. In this paper, I will examine the Festa della Chinea in the context of the tradition of festivals in Rome, tracing changes in the symbolic and ceremonial meanings of these extravagant events with specific focus on equine and water symbolism. As one of the oldest festivals in Rome, which was held annually over a period of about 600 years, the Festa della Chinea provides a rich source of material about how such events were celebrated and understood, both by the organisers and the spectators. Routledge 2018-10 Book Section PeerReviewed text en https://repository.londonmet.ac.uk/5896/1/FestadellaChinea_BookChap.docx Temple, Nicholas (2018) Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy. In: Architecture, festival and the city. AHRA: critical studies in architectural humanities (14). Routledge, London, pp. 49-62.
spellingShingle 200 Religion
230 Christianity & Christian theology
270 History of Christianity & Christian church
290 Other religions
700 The arts; fine & decorative arts
710 Civic & landscape art
720 Architecture
740 Drawing & decorative arts
750 Painting & paintings
Temple, Nicholas
Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy
title Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy
title_full Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy
title_fullStr Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy
title_full_unstemmed Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy
title_short Festa della Chinea: tradition and the 'exotic' in Roman festival design - Italy
title_sort festa della chinea tradition and the exotic in roman festival design italy
topic 200 Religion
230 Christianity & Christian theology
270 History of Christianity & Christian church
290 Other religions
700 The arts; fine & decorative arts
710 Civic & landscape art
720 Architecture
740 Drawing & decorative arts
750 Painting & paintings
url https://repository.londonmet.ac.uk/5896/1/FestadellaChinea_BookChap.docx
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