Old Italian doors are often featured on calendars and postcards for
they are icons of “picturesque Italy”.
There is more than meets the eye, for original,
antique doors, many dating back 300 to
500 years, give us a glimpse into the past, a look at the
lifestyle and hint at what was important to people in days
gone by.
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| Sant'Egidio chapel |
The linguist will find a whole
new set of words used for describing doors, doorways, locks and keys .
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| flowered plant overwhelms this tiny doorway |
The story of an old palazzo in my latest book tells how the
crumbling wooden entrance way leading
down into the cantina where local farmers once stored their products
(oil, hazelnuts,etc.) had to be replaced
in order to become a dignified entrance way.
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| how my door used to look |
The new door was created by one of
the local carpenters following our own
design. It made a statement, telling all
who passed by that the once abandoned building now had a new owner, one who had undertaken a huge, costly restoration project.
Since then many others (mostly foreign born), have followed suit, buying up and restoring other
historic properties and bringing new life to the town.
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| new door created by Santucci falegnameria, Vetralla |
Walk along the street and you will see all types of doors from ugly
metal ones added in recent years to this
gem recently restored to its original glory by falegname
Pino after several generations of neglect.
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| Pino restored this 16th century door |
Note the nailheads
and the tiny door/window which
allowed light in to the dark entrance stairway.
The building dates from 1581 and
Pino guesses that the wooden doorway also
dates from about that time.
Cantina level
doorways can be small and derelict . Most have a sliding bar and system of
closure with a giant iron key and lock.
The holes allow for air circulation for the wine.
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| cantina entrance near Madonna del Riscatto church |
Instead of
doorbells, gorgeously detailed bronze batocchi decorate most doors in Italian towns.
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| Palazzo Vinci 1595 |
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| Baroque doorway |
Besides the practical use of resounding a hearty knock , batocchi reflected
contemporary fashion and family status.
The sphinx-like heads from this door in
Viterbo’s center dates around the Napoleonic invasion of Egypt,
1798-1801.
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| flowered doorway for a neighborhood chat |
