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Siena's Palio has been going for over three centuries in its present form and on its present site, the majestic, scallop-shaped Piazza del Campo - one of the world's most beautiful city squares. There are two Palios each year - on 2 July and 16 August (though a third Palio straordinario is sometimes held in September to commemorate special events). Ten of the 17 contrade compete in each race: seven are in by right because they missed the previous one, while the other three are drawn by lot. Around a week before the Palio, city workmen put down la terra in piazza - the gravelly burnt yellow earth that turns the Campo's flagstones into a racetrack. With three days to go, each of the competing contrade is assigned a horse - again by lot - from the pool of ten which the capitani have selected with the help of qualified vets. Each contrada is free, however, to field its own fantino (jockey), who rides wearing the contrada's colours.

On race day, after the marching is over, and just as the evening shadows have covered all except the sunlit facade of the Palazzo Publico, the horses and jockeys make their entrance. After a protracted spell of what looks like chronic disorganisation at the starting line, the tenth horse - il cavallo di rincorsa - makes his charge from behind the line, the rope is dropped and - unless a false start is declared, which is not uncommon - the ten mounts are off.

Jockeys slash at each other with whips, box in their rivals, dash for the best angle and, not infrequently, end up sprawled beneath the oncoming hooves or find themselves dropping in on the spectators like reluctant angels. At the two tight corners at the bottom end of the circuit, the Casato and San Martino, there are even rows of mattresses propped up on end to cushion the inevitable falls.

Three circuits of the piazza and it's all over. The whole mad dash lasts approximately 75 seconds. But the winning contrada's celebrations go on all night, and flags, dinners, celebratory books and videos and blow-by-blow reconstructions of the race will keep the jubilant contradaioli busy for months afterwards.

The Contrade

Most of the tourists wandering down to Piazza del Campo from the bus terminus are unaware that they are treading a thin line between three contrade - the Drago, the Lupa and the Bruco - before plunging into Civetta territory. But for the Sienese, there might as well be border guards.

The city is divided up into seventeen contrade - a territorial division which goes back at least as far as the thirteenth century. Many consist of no more than ten streets, with an average of 3,500 inhabitants in each. There are contrade in other Tuscan towns - Montepulciano, for example - but only in Siena do they have such a vital place in the city's body politic. Despite their tiny dimensions, the contrade function as what Sienese-born anthropologist Alessandro Falassi refers to as “a combination of mutual aid society and social club”. Contrade own property, which is used either for communal spaces (bar, social centre, library, museum) or to provide low-rent housing for those in need. With a power-structure similar to that of most local authorities (the top man is the priore), some even go so far as to consider themselves mini city-states, and enter into twinning arrangements with cities in Italy and abroad. Contrada income is derived from a combination of subscription, fund-raising activities and rent income.

Each has its own set of colours (worn by the jockey during the Palio) and its own flag, upon which the contrada symbol (almost always featuring an animal) is displayed. There is a fierce sense of loyalty to one's own contrada, and an equally sharp sense of the alliances and enmities which affect its relationship with the others. So high have feelings run in the past that husbands and wives born in different contrade have separated in the run-up to the Palio in order to avoid arguments; in the past, when birth within the area of the contrada was an essential qualification, husbands had been known to drag their pregnant wives into the 'right' contrada so that their sons would follow in daddy's footsteps.

Like all states, the contrade have alliances and rivalries. Over the years, the rivalries especially have become solidified into traditional 'enmity pairs', though recent years have seen some successful peacekeeping efforts. In 1970, only one contrada (Selva) was without enemies; now there are four. The rivalries - some of which are documented as early as the seventeenth century - generally flare up only at Palio time, though there are occasional incidents at other times. At present the 'enmity pairs' are: Torre vs Oca/Onda; Istrice vs Lupa; Chiocciola vs Tartuca; Nicchio vs Montone; Aquila vs Pantera and Civetta vs Leocorno. Any contradaiolo will tell you that seeing your enemy lose is the next best thing to winning - and large sums are often disbursed, even by non-participating contrade, to achieve just that.

From north to south, the 17 contrade and their symbols are as follows: Istrice (porcupine), Lupa (she-wolf), Bruco (caterpillar), Drago (dragon), Giraffa (giraffe), Civetta (owl), Oca (goose), Leocorno (unicorn), Nicchio (shell), Selva (rhinocerous), Torre (elephant and tower), Aquila (eagle), Pantera (panther), Onda (dolphin), Montone (ram), Tartuca (tortoise), Chiocciola (snail).

Palio curiosities

From 'La Terra in Piazza, An interpretation of the Palio of Siena' by Alan Dundes and Alessandro Falassi:

'A careful observer will soon realise that this horserace differs markedly from other horseraces he may have seen in the past. Special features include these facts:

1) The race is run in honour of the Virgin Mary.
2) Although thousands of dollars change hands, there is no betting.
3) The winner of the race receives a silk banner as prize but he must pay a small fortune to pay for victory.
4) The losers receive money but they are sad at the disgrace of having lost.
5) The horse which comes in second is the horse which loses.
6) The traditional enemy of the winner is considered also to have lost the race even if he did not actually race as one of the ten participants.
7) Before the race, each horse is taken inside a church to be solemnly blessed.
8) During the days immediately before the race, the jockeys are guarded night and day and they are not permitted to speak to anyone except to and through their bodyguards.
9) During the race, the jockeys beat each other and their horses with whips made from calf phalluses.
10) After the race, the winners suck pacifiers (dummies), while the losers take a purge.'

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