On a day when Barga was full of VIP's, politicians
and the "well to do" all dressed up to
the nines to watch the Head of the Italian Senate* give the keys to the city of Barga to the head of
the local foundry, the area's biggest industry, not
many people would have noticed an old plastic fertiliser
bag lying on the bench outside Aristodemo's bar.
It was actually a testament to one of the oldest forms
of industry in this area and an interesting insight
into the way that modern objects can be incorporated
and mutatated by traditional methods.
The sack contains charcoal brought down from the mountain
from one of the last families still making charcoal
in this area. A centuries old practice once the mainstay
of many families but now only kept alive by a few "old
hands"
This sack of charcoal did not change hands for money
but was bartered for some of Aristodemo's famous sheep's
cheese.
Have a close look at the way the sack has been closed.
Three sticks are bent and pushed through the plastic
to keep everything inside. Simple but effective. This
is the traditional method of sealing sacks but it also
carries with it another story; a story which involves
sleight of hand and false accounting.
The charcoal burners were paid by weight of their
sacks of charcoal. They too had a "millers gold
thumb" method for making a little extra with their
business.
The sacks would be weighed and the weight written
on one of the three sticks used for closing the bag,
A portion of the bark would be scraped away and figure
written on the fresh clean white wood.
The trick was to remove some of the charcoal after
it had been weighed and to write another figure on
one of the other sticks which showed the now lesser
weight.
The stick would be covered up by their hand and the
stick with the higher figure would be shown to the
tallyman. If they were challenged, the hand would be
moved to uncover the real weight and cover up the false
one.
Most people didn't notice then and very few noticed
today, apart from members of the local police force
who got the sack moved as it was unsightly.
*There were also pairs of secret service men wandering
around trying not to look conspicuous as they muttered
into their lapels and pretended to be tourists. It
seems you can only join the Italian secret service
if you take a friend. I wonder what they would have
thought if they could have heard the guys in Aristo's
bar pointing out another couple as they entered the
piazza..."hey, that makes 4 today"
.........Secret service ?
|