SUPERSTITIONS AND SEAFARING TRADITIONS IN COTTONERA PART 2
A wave instead of an SMS
For over 260 years, the people living in the Three Cities were influenced by the seafaring Knights of St John. Because of this, they came to see St John the Baptist, the Knights’ patron saint, as a protector of sailors and their ships. Even after the Knights were forced to leave Malta, this tradition continued well into the 1800s.
Beheading of St John the Baptist by Caravaggio. St John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta
In the days before telegraphs, mobiles and satellite communication, there was no way of knowing if something had happened to a loved one out at sea. Imagine a sailor’s wife or mother waiting for days and days on end for some news. What if some accident had befallen your man or son? What if they had been attacked by pirates or corsairs and taken prisoner? What if they had drowned? Worse, what if they abandoned you and fell in love with somebody else? A woman could go mad with despair.
When a lot of time had gone by without any communication, women, especially in the Cottonera area, would turn to the sea itself for answers. Come nightfall, they would make their way to the shore at l-Isla and begin praying. St John the Baptist or, better still, ‘the beheaded’ would be invoked. If you listened closely, you would hear them chanting repeatedly the words “San Gwann Dekullar urini s-sewwa u l-verita!” (St John the Beheaded show me the truth; Dekullar is a version of the word dekollat, which means beheaded). If a woman saw a wave suddenly moving in front of them, she would wail, “He has drowned!” Because we always cling to hope, no wife ever said, “He has left me!”
Senglea shoreline. Source: biveros.com
A burial at sea for Carnival
Life for Malta’s poor folk was tough throughout history, especially in winter. They woke up early, worked hard all day, and went to bed at sunset. Meals were simple and repetitive, and daily life revolved around religious traditions. But Carnival brought a much-needed break! It was an excuse for everyone to let their hair down, a time to have fun, relax, and enjoy themselves. Just before the eve of Ash Wednesday, the celebrations turned up a notch as people partied wildly, knowing Lent—a time of fasting and sacrifice—was about to begin.
1938 photo of Carnival in Malta. Source: Bob Mclernon
Death of Carnival by G. Lanfranco
One of Carnival’s traditions was carrying a cardboard coffin containing a skeleton and skulls. This coffin symbolised the end of Carnival and was burned on a bonfire. Villagers would throw trash at each other and sing and dance around the coffin.
In the seaside villages of L-Isla, Bormla, and Birgu, the makeshift coffins weren’t burned. Instead, amidst lively celebrations and laughter, sailors danced around a ship’s capstan (żifna ta’ l-argnu), and the coffins were thrown into the sea with riotous joy and excitement.
Don’t touch!
Legends and tales are often a human’s way of explaining or giving meaning to a strange or unusual geological feature.
One day, during a tempestuous storm, a mermaid, struggling against the raging currents, found herself swept into the Grand Harbour. There, near the peninsula of L-Isla, she found refuge in a cave. Her new accommodation pleased her, and she decided to make it her home. Passing by the cave, boatmen and fishermen would often hear her singing, but she was never seen by anyone. Curiosity got the better of a young boatman, who, intrigued by the sweetness of her voice, rowed towards its source and found himself inside the cave.
As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he made out the strange figure of a woman with a tail for her legs perched on a rock. He was struck by her beauty and fell instantly in love, going to visit her each day. The mermaid would sing to him but always stayed out of his reach. Overwhelmed by passion, one day, he dared to touch her. The impulsive boatman did not know that the mermaid had a curse put on her, one that would turn her into stone if touched by a human. The boatman watched in anguish and horror as the object of his affection slowly petrified into a rock that looks like a mermaid till this day. The cave known as L-Għar tas-Sirena (the Mermaid’s Cave) lies in the vicinity of a street in L-Isla called Mermaid’s Street. Now you know why the street gets its name!
Shell fountain in the Siren’s cave, L-Isla. Source: kottonera.mt
Written with reference to:
- ‘The Maltese islands and the Sea’ edited by Timmy Gambin, Midsea Books, 2015