The vintage

This idyllic rural scene possibly depicts the tarantella, a traditional Italian folk dance which takes its name from the coastal city of Taranto and is usually accompanied by tambourine, accordion and bagpipe players, all of whom are represented. The origins of the dance supposedly relates to the phenomenon of ‘tarantism’, a dancing mania recorded in the Middle Ages. This might explain why depictions of individuals performing the tarantella often have a bacchanalian resonance. This connection is highlighted in Tiratelli’s painting, as his processional figures balance baskets of harvested grapes atop their heads. They wear traditional Ciociaro costume, with the women dressed in colourful corpettos (bodices) and their hair secured under embroidered fazzolettos (headscarves).

Vincenzo Angletti and Paola Carlini identify one of the two women leading the procession as almost certainly being Grazia Faraone, "Graziuccia", Cesare's favourite model (Aurelio and Cesare Tiratelli, Painters from Ceccano, Frosinone, 2000, p. 49).

Cesare Tiratelli’s father, Aurelio (1842-1900), was an established landscape painter and sculptor. Following in the footsteps of his father and uncle, he enrolled in the Accademia di San Luca in Rome and devoted himself to subjects that focused on regional custom and pastoral simplicity, particularly in Roman Campagna. Fond of this subject, Tiratelli populated his paintings with thronging figures returning from the fields to celebrate their yield in works such as The Village Feast (sold Christie’s, London, 22 April 2004, lot 223).