CET Siena: The Chiocciola Contrada

In Siena you are always surrounded by contrada life. You walk on the street and you see a series of different contrada symbols everywhere. When you tell people where you live, you usually add in which contrada is located for a reference point. If you are lucky enough to come to study in Siena in the Fall like us, then the first month you arrive, the August Palio winning contrada’s drums will wake you up at 1 am. It is the first culture shock that you will experience here. Even though we were annoyed of these banging sounds, we benefitted by attending different contrada parties when the weather was actually amazing here. Contrada life surrounds Siena, and it is one of the things that makes this small medieval town so unique. I personally lived in the Aquila (Eagle) contrada, and I know that I will always root for it in the Palio from this day forward (also, we had the best party in September, so obviously we are the best) After being introduced to this system of neighborhoods, I personally wanted to have more understanding of how it functioned. Luckily, in our Italian Cultural History class (our teacher is a devoted Istrice contradaiolo) we had a lesson on the history of the contradas and how they function. A contrada is essentially a small community that has a governing body, its own church, and recreation center. The governing body can tax the people that live in the contrada and discusses all the contrada’s affairs. However, during the Palio, the contrada governing body becomes a “dictatorship” and the capitano makes all the decisions on behalf of the contrada. The Palio is a very stressful as well as exciting time for the contrada. They want to get the best horse, there are hidden and underground deals going on with other contradas, and the jockey has to be picked very carefully. Winning the Palio is the greatest honor than a contrada could receive, and their success means they can celebrate all year and rub it in their rival’s face.

We were lucky enough to visit the Chiocciola (snail) contrada museum, where we learned about the history of the contrada and saw some very old artifacts. Firstly, we saw where the newborn kids are baptized into the contrada. This baptism signifies that they will always be loyal to their contrada and put them first until the day they die. Later we were showed a room full of old artifacts that always had a snail included in order to signify the Chiocciola. It was really interesting to see how the contrada preserved its history, and how proud they were to have all of these things. Lastly, we entered the room where all the winning Palio banners were. The oldest banner was over 100 years old and comparing the different styles from the oldest to the youngest was a huge shock. The banners always have a picture of the Virgin Mary and the symbols of all the contradas that participated in that Palio. The last time Chiocciola won a Palio was in 1999, but the museum guide said that they never lose hope for their next win. The visit to the museum made me realize even deeper how important contrada life is in Siena, and how deep the loyalty is amongst the people in it. Contrada life is one of the prime things that makes this town so special, and it is worth the time to truly learn about it and understand how it functions.