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The Explosion of the Cart (Scoppio del Carro) is an event that has been held in Florence for over nine centuries on Easter Sunday. But let us take a closer look at the origins of this distinctive celebration and what it involves.
The ceremony has a special meaning, especially for the Florentines, as it involves historical and devotional elements that are deeply connected to the city's identity.
During the ceremony of the Holy Mass, the archbishop with the holy fire ignites the "colombina", a little rocket in the shape of a dove. Lit with the Holy Fire, the rocket travels along a wire connected to the Brindellone, which stands outside the cathedral.
The Brindellone is a three-tiered triumphal cart, originally built in the time of the Pazzi family and preserved over the centuries thanks to continual restoration.It was the Pazzi family, through the construction of the monumental "Cart of Fire", who laid the foundations of the present-day ceremony which,
symbolically, distributed the blessed fire throughout the city.
Once it reaches the cart, the dove sets off the various fireworks positioned on top, which explains the name "Explosion of the Cart". These fireworks create a display of light that symbolically represents the spreading of the Holy Fire to all the people of Florence.
From the seventeenth century onwards, the ceremony took on its present form, with four oxen, beautifully adorned, drawing the Brindellone from its location in the Piazza del Prato to the Cathedral.
Free event
Free event
