Halubajski zvončari - Bell-Carriers From Viškovo
Halubajski zvončari - Bell-Carriers From Viškovo
I decided to use this community for this blog post cause I believe that this Croatian carnival tradition is a true culture gem very important for us to be preserved but also I believe that my photos are pretty high quality which are gems for itself...
This group is the largest & the most famous group of bell-carriers in Croatia. They are also the most wicked & always doing a lot of little naughty tricks everywhere they go on their walkabouts & parades during the carnival time.
The Captain
As well as the other groups they have their captain who has a high authority & all the "soldiers" need to obey his commands.
It can be seen how they create a special army look-a-like formation order & mastered by the captain in the middle.
The captain holds a real sword & a whistle which he uses as tools to conduct the troop.
If some soldiers do not obey the orders, he even grabs them by hand & directs them as he wants.
Soldiers
Same as in other bell-carrier groups, members of this groups also big strong guys who are able to carry all this mask equipment & walk for 10-20 km per day. Same like many real army trainings.
Just to remind you about the legend of the origins of this tradition... It is believed that these masks appeared in the time when the Turks invaded Balkans & threatened to conquer whole Europe. The legend says that the Turks never managed to progress towards Western Balkan, Istria nor Italy cause the Turkish soldiers were terrified of these beasts or ghosts & refused to fight & even fleeing the battlefield...
A bit funny thing is that many small children seeing these guys really start crying & hide behind their parents.
Making The "zvončarsko kolo"
Bell-Carriers from Viškovo coming to Bane
It was in the other village few years ago when I recorded this kolo so I post it here that you can see how it looks like cause I didn't recorded it during this years traditional gathering parade of most of the bell-carrier groups acting in my area.
Blowing The Horn
Horn blowing happens after the kolo. It is kind of a signal for keeping the troop together & reminding the member about their obligation to stay near & be prepared to move on when ordered...
Resting
...meanwhile, everybody is resting, drinking & eating for 10-15 min before moving on.
In these moments many members like to pose to the photographers around, especially the younger ones.
This groups has a special member which is often called "the devil" & does the worst provocations to the gathered crowd but also he is the least respected member. One of his favorite tricks is to touch the faces of beautiful women in the crowd with his dirty black hands.
As the fake "corona virus" was actual in the past years, the group "private doctor" was giving injection shots of "rakija" to the members as the energy boosters to be able to move on after resting. We on Balkans believe that rakija has medicinal properties!
New Generation
Some children are not afraid of the bell-carriers & even not of the devil. I thinks this little guy is possibly the youngest member of this group. In this shot the kid is pooling the rope tied to the devil teasing him.
March On
After the rest the captains order to move on & the soldiers obey. This groups is so large that they have 2 captains - one in front leading, one on the end pushing.
I finally posted all I got from this year's bell-carriers parade. Below you can take a look on previous posts & read about Croatian carnival tradition:
- 1st post: https://steemit.com/hive-109435/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-bell-carriers-from-bregi
- 2nd post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-from-vukojevci-and-sovinjak
- 3rd post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/portrait-photography-and-art-contest-week-121-rainbow-hair-man
- 4th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-from-frlanija
- 5th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-from-zejane
- 6th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-from-cicarija
- 7th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-from-zamet
- 8th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/portrait-photography-and-art-contest-week-126-light-in-the-dark
- 9th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-from-kukuljanovo
- 10th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-from-veli-brgud
- 11th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/traditional-croatian-carnival-masks-from-vlahov-breg-and-korensko
- 12th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/portrait-photography-and-art-contest-week-136-injection
- 13th post: https://steemit.com/hive-185836/@careassaktart/grobnicki-dondolasi-bell-carriers-from-grobnik
All the upper shots I made with Nikon D800 & Sigma 105 mm 1:2.8 DG Macro HSM lens & for the self-portrait below I used the same camera but different lens - Nikon AF Nikkor 35-70 mm.
In this article, which I published 5 years ago, I explained in details the Croatian Carnival traditions & my personal engagement in it: https://steemit.com/culturevulture/@careassaktart/carnival-festival-in-croatia
In the next few video which I've recorded, edited & published, you can see few traditional bell-carriers activities during the carnival time:
Bell-Carriers from Zvoneće coming to Mučići
Bell-Carriers from & in Žejane opening the carnival time
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