Palio Marinaro dell’Argentario: the historic rowboat race on the southern Tuscan coastThe old fishermen’s village of Porto Santo Stefano organizes every year a traditional rowboat race between 4 districts of the Argentario – this amazing southern Tuscan peninsula connected to the continent by two natural strips of land.
The Palio Marinaro happens every 15th of August, the mid-August holiday. But actually this event is connected to many different manifestations that last from July to the end of August. They include music shows, historic parades, processions and other events linked with the Palio itself, like the crew presentation, the boats draw to select which crew will receive each boat, and finally the post- Palio parties. The four teams that dispute the race correspond to 4 districts of the city. They are called: CROCE, FORTEZZA, PILARELLA and VALLE. Each one has its own badge and colours.
The race has distant origins, some people say that it is a performance of a fact happened in the ancient history, when a group of local fishermen have scampered from the barbarian invaders thanks to their ability and cleverness rowing their boats. But experts think that this is just a legend, and probably the origins of the Palio Marinaro comes from the Spanish settlement times. The historians believe this because there is a painting from Ignazio Fabbroni, that during the 17th century has retracted many aspects of Porto Santo Stefano.
In this painting, there are represented 4 rowboats on the blue Turchese bay, each one with one helmsman and four oarsmen that seemed to have engaged a competition to reach the border of the ships anchored on the bay. So, that is the reason why the Palio is a renovated performance of the go to and for of rowboats transporting soldiers, sailors, officers, supplies and arms from the mainland to the ships and vice-versa. As anything were made by rowing, from a work it turned into a game, automatically, along the years.
Challenges between the local sailors started to become a common place specially during the feast days. That is how the Palio was born, but it still wasn’t called like this. It used to be called “corsa di lance” (lifeboat race), “guzzo” and “tartarone” until 1937 when the local government of Monte Argentario have undertaken the organization of this event determining its rules and giving its name of Palio Marinaro dell’Argentario.
The local people have a strong sentiment about the Palio Marinaro, the town is divided in four districts that really take it seriously and support very strongly their teams. People dress up as pirates, Vikings or other characters, using the colours of their districts. They hang up on the houses banner with phrases to support their teams. The town is completely coloured, crowded and roused. The Fortezza (Fortress) district have been the winner of 2007.
Adriana Lucchesi for Tuscany - villas.com 2007
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