Tubular whistle attached to base
Clay, glazed white and red, green base
stamped on base 'Eusanio Polci, Castelli'
65mm (h)
Italy (Abruzzo)
Late-19th - early-20th century (pre 1920)
There are instances where links with old ritual seem to surface in some present day traditions and customs. One such example exists in Italy; In Vicenza, on the feast of St. Mark (25th April), young men traditionally give a girl of their choice a clay whistle as a declaration of love. This gift, often in the shape of a cockerel, is therefore not that of a simple sound producer but is a clear symbolic gesture with its roots harking back into the mists of time. Cockerels carry clear sexual and fertility symbolism but whistles of any shape also seem to suggest similar ideas. Similar traditions exist on particular feast days in Piemonte, in Bari, as well as outside Italy in areas of France such as Alsace and Montpellier.
