Neapolitan crib born of priest's research

Those who have never seen a Neapolitan Christmas crib will be surprised to learn that the nativity takes place in the ruins of a Roman house, and in broad daylight.

The crib includes three separate sections made up of the nativity scene, the shepherds of the annunciation and the tavern scene.

A typical Neapolitan crib embellished with 18th century figurines, the pasturi, has been built by Omar Camilleri, Martin Gatt and Hubert Mifsud. They have all been putting long hours into the task since September and between them have been through 200 kilos of cork to build the crib.

The mentor behind the idea is Fr Edgar Vella, who has been doing research on Neapolitan cribs for the past 20 years and in the process has sourced from private collections about 60 authentic figurines made in the 18th century.

The enthusiasm with which Fr Vella talks about Neapolitan cribs is contagious.

"Neapolitan cribs represent scenes bursting with the hustle and bustle of street life. The realism created by the scenes themselves and in particular by the figurines that were modelled on people who lived in those days is impressive," said Fr Vella, whose full-time job is to put together an inventory of the works of art of the Catholic Church.

One of the collective concerns that Neapolitans harboured in those days was the fear of starvation. At the end of each year, farmers and growers used to go to the noble families who owned the land to present them with the rent due which was usually paid in kind, either in vegetables and fruit, poultry or other farm animals.

In his painstaking project, Fr Vella has roped in the expertise of his old friend, Antonio Canone, a specialist in Neapolitan cribs.

"The tavern scene in the crib represents a gastronomic feast with people feasting on food, wine and making merry while musicians strummed guitars to add to the merry making.

"The inn keeper and the people enjoying themselves represent those people in Bethlehem who at the time were unaware of the birth of Christ."

The crib is shown in broad daylight as a symbol of the light of salvation. It is placed in Roman ruins because 18th century crib makers were greatly influenced by the excavations then taking place at Pompeii. "The Roman ruins represented the decadence of paganism and the birth of Christianity," Fr Vella explained.

The figurines consisted of various parts each made by a different craftsman. The head and shoulders were in terracotta, the eyes glass and the rest of the body - except for the hands and feet, which were made of wood - was made of a wire frame covered with tow and hemp.

Having moveable hands and legs one could position the figurines as one liked. They were then passed on to tailors to dress them up. The bare parts were painted in various layers of pigment and finished to look like porcelain.

Noble and well-off Neapolitan families used to vie with each other and commission figurines wearing accessories in proper gold, silver and precious stones.

The crib will be on public display at the Wignacourt Museum, in Rabat from Thursday to January 6, Monday to Saturday between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

"The moss used in the crib was freshly cut and flown over to Malta to add to the realism that the crib symbolises," Fr Vella noted.