Italy Customs and costumes
Punch and Judy puppet shows began in Italy about 400 years ago with a character called Pulcinella. At first, the characters were puppets worked by wires. By 1800 in England, the show had become a glove puppet show. Pulcinella had become Punch with a wife named Joan or Judy.
All over Italy there are festivals in which people dress up in masks and medieval costumes. There are colourful masked balls in Venice. In Arezzo, there are jousting matches between people dressed up as crusader knights and their enemies, the Saracens. In Florence, a football match is played between Italian teams - dressed in medieval costumes. People ride bareback in a horse race around the piazza in Siena. The race is called the palio and it began in medieval times. Before the race, there is a parade. Italian People wear medieval costumes and wave flags.
Opera and artists at Italy
Some of the world's best opera composers and singers have come from Italy. Italian painters and sculptors have created some of the world's greatest masterpieces. The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican City was painted by Michelangelo. It took him four years to complete, between 1508 and 1512. He had to paint while lying on his back up a 20-metre scaffold. Leonardo da Vinci was another great artist, inventor and scientist of the time. The Mona Lisa is one of his best-known paintings.
Italy Festivals
Religion and festivals of Italy
Almost all Italians are brought up to be Roman Catholics and many Italian festivals are connected with the Roman Catholic religion. There are local saints' days and other religious events throughout the year. A music festival is held during Easter week in Assisi, the home of St Francis. Some festivals combine Roman festivals with later Christian festivals. The festival of Ferragosto in August recalls the Roman Emperor Augustus, as well as the Virgin Mary.
Each town in Italy has its own saint. Many towns celebrate their saint's day with a festival, when a statue of their saint is carried through the streets . Different types of food are linked to these religious festivals . For example, marzipan or chocolate lambs are made to eat after Lent, a time when Catholics give up luxuries such as chocolate . On New Year's Day, the Pope gives a blessing to people all over the world from a balcony in the Vatican City. People crowd into St Peter's Square to hear him give this blessing.
