The Sartiglia of Oristano

La Sartiglia is a spectacular and choreographic carnival event. The name derives from the Castilian 'Sortija' and the Catalan 'Sortilla', both originating from the Latin sorticola (ring), but also a diminutive of sors (fortune). The etymology of the term contains the meaning of the equestrian joust closely linked to fate, luck and the pagan rites propitiating the fertility of the earth.
The Sartiglia on Carnival Sunday takes place under the protection of Saint John the Baptist and its ceremonial phases are organized and directed by the Farmers' Guild, while on Tuesday the rites are organized by the Carpenters Guild, under the protection of Saint Joseph.
The protagonist is on Cumponidori (the knight) whose name derives from that of the field master of the Spanish 'ring', called Componedor. The party begins with the long ritual of dressing the leader sitting on a wooden table: from this moment on he will not be able to touch the ground until the end of the day. The women (is Massaieddas), led by Massaia manna, dress the knight in a white shirt, pants and leather cojettu (a sort of vest formerly used as a work suit by artisans), cover his face with an androgynous mask held firm with a bandage, then adorn his head with a wedding veil and a black cylinder. Man and woman at the same time, on Componidori he becomes a sort of demigod.
The knight is the lord of the party. After having blessed the crowd with Pippia de Maju (a bundle of periwinkles and violets, a symbol of spring fruitfulness), she has the task of opening the race, first inserting a star hanging by a string with her sword. He will then choose the knights who will have the honor of participating in the ride. Tradition has it that the abundance or scarcity of the harvest depends on the number of stars inserted. The last race to the ring is carried out with su stoccu, a worked wooden rod.
Before the draw races that will take place until sunset in the nearby Via Mazzini, at the close of the Sartiglia, on Cumponidori he will have to try his hand at “sa remada”: lying on his back on the horse's back he will gallop the track, blessing the crowd.
On Monday there is Sa Sartigliedda, a reduced version of Sartiglia reserved for children, who ride the famous Giara horses. This event is repeated also in summer, in mid-August.

The masks
Su Cumponidori: he wears a white shirt, pants and leather vest, an androgynous mask on his face, a wedding veil and a black cylinder.

History
The origins of Sartiglia are to be found in medieval equestrian competitions, already practiced by the Saracens and introduced to the West by the Crusaders between 1118 and 1200. This ring race, probably present in Oristano as early as 1350, could have been carried out for the first time on the occasion of the wedding of Judge Mariano II: at that time the ties between the Aragonese court and the Arborea court allowed the children of the Giudicato to be educated in Aragon where this chivalric exercise was already widely practiced. The race, originally a manifestation of the noble classes, immediately became the emblem of the judicial and chivalric tradition of Oristano and still remains today an expression of the life and popular culture of Oristano.

Update

6/2/2024 - 15:39