[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”8367″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
The traditional clothing of the Sierra de Albarrac\u00edn that prevailed in the 18th century until the end of the 19th century, and that has marked the characteristics of the folkloric apparel, depended among other things, on the original materials that existed in each area and that were used to make them.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n In spite of this, there are certain elements that can influence the characterization of typical costumes, although they are not determining factors, according to several scholars. In this case, the low winter temperatures of the Sierra de Albarrac\u00edn, whose average altitude is close to 1,000 meters above sea level, and the landscapes of an abrupt mountain range, have established the use of certain garments in this highland.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The professor maintains that the harshness of the weather was resolved with a good shawl or scarf, but did not result in a definite design for the outfits. This circumstance, however, can be seen in the use of certain materials, such as the wooden soles of shoes, or in the thick fabrics used to make the clothes.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”8638″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”link_image” lightbox=”yes”][vc_single_image image=”8368″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”link_image” lightbox=”yes”][vc_single_image image=”8369″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”link_image” lightbox=”yes”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n However, there are some very characteristic garments such as the elaborate 19th-century men\u2019s shirts, which are a curious example of the transformation of a garment from the cattle merchant sector, magnified with rich fabrics and bright colours to become the attire of celebration and ceremony.<\/p>\n As with the weather, the geography of the Sierra de Albarrac\u00edn, on the border of Cuenca, has resulted in a series of influences from other provinces that have remained intact throughout history; there have even been extensions of one land to another, allowing for other customs to be introduced, and of course, certain elements of Cordellate cloth clothing.<\/p>\n All this defines the typical Sierra de Albarrac\u00edn costume with certain variations:<\/p>\n The women wore open cloth or goatskin shoes, stockings, patterned or otherwise, made of blue or white worsted cotton, a relatively short skirt, small apron, narrow-sleeved doublet, neck scarf, and shawl of heavy fabric or flannel, depending on the season and the occasion.<\/p>\n The men wore open espadrilles, and instead of socks they wore short white stockings. The rest of their clothing was completed with short knickerbockers made in local Cordellate cloth, black Cordellate vest, cape, blanket or scarf also made of Cordellate, with or without a hat, and if one was worn, it was made of felt with a low crown and a wide brim. The cummerbund (made of yarn and very exceptionally silk) was usually blue or purple and the jacket was sometimes replaced by a shirt. The cape, the hat and the jacket were ceremonial clothes and for work. At home or to go out into the country they usually went in shirt sleeves or \u2018a forro\u2019<\/em> (wearing the \u2018undergarment\u2019).<\/p>\n The women wore fitted skirts, pleated or collared, and a merino shawl crossed and fastened to the waist. The men wore tight-fitting knickerbockers with no marinetas<\/em> or hanging tassels, tied under the knee, high-neck crossover vest and short, tight-fitting jacket in dark colours.<\/p>\n Purificaci\u00f3n Atri\u00e1n, former director of the Provincial Museum of Teruel, notes there are substantial differences in the women\u2019s outfits between public holidays and working days, according to the permanent collection on show in the Museum’s display cases.<\/p>\n For the latter, the \u2018cordellate\u2019 cloth was used. It was made locally, and was also used to make the shepherdesses’ skirts, to protect them from the cold and rain. Atri\u00e1n affirms that these skirts “could be plain, although enhanced or adorned with a strip of another colour, sometimes trimmed, which was then stitched onto the lower hem”. Locally made \u2018cordellate cloth\u2019 was used for a good number of male and female garments, not only for working attire, but also for festive costumes.<\/p>\n In the latter case, cordellate was used to make underskirts, over which a saya<\/em> (skirt) and an apron were worn, made in blue with fine white vertical stripes. On the torso they wore a cotton chambra<\/em> (blouse) that was occasionally embroidered as adornment on the cuffs. A large woollen shawl, crossed at the front, topped with a scarf, protected the woman from the cold, together with a smaller, more brightly coloured scarf that covered her head.<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row full_width=”stretch_row” css=”.vc_custom_1650033261038{padding-top: 100px !important;padding-bottom: 100px !important;background-image: url(https:\/\/www.albarracin.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/fondo-8-rincones-white-2.jpg?id=3062) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}” el_class=”ffm bg2″][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1675773294890{margin-bottom: 50px !important;}”]<\/p>\n January 17th<\/strong><\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”6462″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]San Ant\u00f3n, the patron saint of animals, is celebrated by blessing the animals. It was customary to bless a piglet that was released in the streets; it was everyone’s duty to feed it and then take it back to its pen at night. The date of its slaughter and benefit vary according to the data compiled. In the evening, bonfires are lit in all the City’s neighbourhoods, with firewood collected on the river bank by the young people and from private donations. People gather around the fire, where potatoes, somarro<\/em>, and pig snouts are cooked. It was customary for each person to warm themselves and cook their meat on the neighbourhood fire; to bypass the norm was punished with sticks until recently.<\/p>\n Nowadays, visitors can approach any of the bonfires in the various neighbourhoods, to grill their meat. The people of Albarrac\u00edn are very friendly to visitors and usually offer them some of their food and a good sip from the wineskin.<\/p>\n The biggest and most popular bonfire among locals is the one in El Arrabal, with flames reaching up to ten metres high\u00a0 at its height, whereas visitors are drawn to the one in the Plaza Mayor square.<\/p>\n For reasons related to the work calendar, the bonfires are no longer held on the day of San Ant\u00f3n, moving this tradition to the Saturday closest to 17th January.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row full_width=”stretch_row” css=”.vc_custom_1650033280124{padding-top: 100px !important;padding-bottom: 100px !important;background-image: url(https:\/\/www.albarracin.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/fondo-8-rincones-gray-2.jpg?id=3063) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}” el_class=”ffm bg2″][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1675773301151{margin-bottom: 50px !important;}”]<\/p>\n April 30th<\/strong><\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n The festival of Los Mayos<\/i> could still be seen almost in all its glory up until about twenty years ago. Today it has become a congregation of the most diverse cross-section of people, in order to have fun; to the point that we can talk about a performance for visitors.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n It used to be a private celebration, of groups or teams, who sang couplets to the local mozas<\/i> (eligible young women) describing their attributes. On 30 April, the mozos<\/i> (eligible young men) met in a house or tavern, where they snacked on hearty dishes; afterwards, the Mayas<\/i> were \u2018auctioned\u2019, consisting of bidding for the chosen maiden. The winner was the girl who received the highest bid. The Virgin Mary also entered the auction. The feasting began with the Mayos<\/i> singing to Her in the doorway of a church. The Mayos<\/i> couplets are sung by the young men while they dance a jota<\/i>, accompanied by guitars and mandolins, then a variable number of stanzas (according to the singer and his group), and it ended with a farewell jota<\/i>. There is no room for rudeness within the Mayos<\/i>, as the stanzas are the same for the Virgin as they are for the young women (mozas), but they are sometimes sung to \u2018punish\u2019 the Maya<\/i> who did not accept the wooing of her Mayo,<\/i> or who did not give him the obligatory dozen eggs. Here are two of the prettiest stanzas:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1615292730003{margin-top: 50px !important;}”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″] Translated Version:<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThere is no pen,<\/strong><\/p>\n nor painter, nor poet,<\/strong><\/p>\n nor brush that could capture<\/strong><\/p>\n your gracious beauty\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n (Choral response)<\/p>\n \u201cnor brush that could capture<\/strong><\/p>\n your gracious beauty\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThese are your eyes<\/strong><\/p>\n like morning stars,<\/strong><\/p>\n when you open them<\/strong><\/p>\n the night fades away.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n Original Version:<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n “No hay pluma que sirva,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n ni pintor, poeta,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n ni pincel que copie,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n tu gentil belleza\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n (Con el estribillo a coro)<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cni pincel que copie<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n tu gentil belleza.”<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n “Esos son tus ojos<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n luceros del alba,<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n que cuando los abres<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n la noche se aclara.”<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text]<\/div>San Antonio Abad<\/h1>\n
Los Mayos<\/h1>\n
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