“Paying homage to the Tower on its 850th birthday and enjoying, whoever wants obviously, the last faint flickering of the lights lit in the night, when the ‘noisy’ party has now died down. For me, it is the sweetest moment”. Professor Gabriella Garzella – now also president of the Pisan Historical Society – offers us precious suggestions for a perfect party. Furthermore, this evening on Canale 50, Garzella will talk about Luminara’s emotions live on TV.
Garzella, can it be argued that this festival is in the DNA of the Pisans?
“Without a doubt. ‘Luminare’ were organized in Pisa even before the 1600s, but it is precisely from this century onwards that the tradition strengthened.”
As a religious or secular holiday?
“Both things. After all, the scenic space of the Lungarni, with this wonderful curve over the Arno, presents Pisa as a natural stage. So the Medici, who stayed at the Palazzo Reale, loved the breathtaking view and these candlelit parties. Everyone they know how the first great installation was born…”.
The translation of San Ranieri in 1688.
“An astonishing celebration which accompanied the remains of the Saint to the new location, still in the Cathedral. The historical sources are full of details. The whole city took part in the procession. Since then the Luminara has become a fixed appointment: a glass, three fingers of water with oil, fire and ‘linens'”.
Did ‘linens’ already exist then?
“And they had exactly the same function as today. They had to cover the ‘holes’ of the Lungarno or make some residences even richer. Important architects also participated in the creation of these linens.”
Candlelight processions are held everywhere. Why is the Luminara different?
“First of all the scenography on the Arno. Until some time ago, even the river was dotted with lights and crossed by boats full of candles. Then for the annual cadence. Soon this tradition was associated with a specific day”.
It’s not a question suitable for a historian, but who knows over the centuries how many Pisans have gotten engaged by candlelight?
“The perfect moment is after the fireworks. The party becomes silent, the Lungarni are intimate with the last faint lights struggling to resist. And then why not visit the Tower?”.
Why?
“I believe it is significant to pay homage to our monument on these special days. We are celebrating its birthday.”
And San Ranieri?
“A proposal and an invitation. For many years the remains of the saint, precisely on the night of the Luminara, were brought to the river to receive the homage of the people. It also happened more recently in 1961, in 2000 on the occasion of the Jubilee and in 2012 (for the 850th anniversary of the death of San Ranieri). It would be nice if next year, on the occasion of the Jubilee, the homage to the body of San Ranieri was proposed again on the Arno”.
