History of Girandola's

[rwebb]

I recall that someone (I think Tom Dimmock) some time ago was looking for
pieces of history of girandola's. Tom, if you do not yet have it, I can
recommend to look into Suzanne Boorsch's "Fireworks! Four centuries of
Pyrotechnics in Prints & Drawings", The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin,
2000. If you go to page 38 you will read about the Girandola at Castel
Sant'Angelo, 1579. But, perhaps this is old news.

Happy New Year,

Rutger Webb

[Mike Swisher]

Biringuccio describes girandole (the correct plural of girandola in Italian) in
his "Pirotechnia" of 1540. The articles illustrated were horizontal wheels but
did not rise under their own power. They appear in the cuts to be suspended from
above by a rope, like chandeliers. "Girandola" or more often "girande" was a
term also used to describe a flight of rockets. I believe it was in this sense
that the term was used of fireworks at Castel Sant'Angelo.

G.A. Alberti, writing in 1749, says "Le Girandole altro non sono, che canne di
carta cariche di certa mistura legate, ed attaccate attorno ad una legger ruota
di legno inserita in un ferro pel centro di essa in modo, che abbruciando la
mistura delle canne, e non potendo partirsi, fanno girare la ruota con tal
velocità, che il fuoco comparisce all'occhio continuato attorno di essa, e dal
girare che fa credo sia venuto il nome di girandola."
This I construe, "girandole are nothing more than paper tubes charged wth a
certain mixture tied and attached around the rim of a light wooden wheel turning
on a central iron (axle) such that the mixture in the tubes being ignited, and
they not being able to part themselves from it (i.e. fly off), the wheel is
caused to turn with such velocity that the fire appears continuous around it s
circumference, and from this I believe comes the name of girandola." In other
words, the article described is an ordinary wheel. This description is found on
p. 78, and the first figure, No. 138 (plate X), cited, shows an ordinary
vertical wheel. Subsequent text describes, and subsquent figures illustrate,
various wheels both horizontal and vertical, carrying various decorations, but
none of a rising or flying kind.

The earliest description I have seen of a flying wheel (in other words, a
"girandola" in the sense that most people understand the term today) is in an
undated ms of 19th century origins. I identify it as 19th century because it
prescribes chlorate colors for garnishments of the wheels, as well as on the
basis of its having been written on wove paper and in a hand that bespeaks 19th
century origins.

Post by rwebb
I recall that someone (I think Tom Dimmock) some time ago was looking for
pieces of history of girandola's. Tom, if you do not yet have it, I can
recommend to look into Suzanne Boorsch's "Fireworks! Four centuries of
Pyrotechnics in Prints & Drawings", The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin,
2000. If you go to page 38 you will read about the Girandola at Castel
Sant'Angelo, 1579. But, perhaps this is old news.
Happy New Year,
Rutger Webb

[rwebb]

Hello Mike,

Indeed, when you look closely, the text that accompanies the description of
the fireworks at Castel Sant'Angelo is not very explicit on exactly what
type of fireworks were used. Very interesting to read what Alberti wrote
about it.

Regards, Rutger

Post by Mike Swisher
Biringuccio describes girandole (the correct plural of girandola in Italian) in
his "Pirotechnia" of 1540. The articles illustrated were horizontal wheels but
did not rise under their own power. They appear in the cuts to be suspended from
above by a rope, like chandeliers. "Girandola" or more often "girande" was a
term also used to describe a flight of rockets. I believe it was in this sense
that the term was used of fireworks at Castel Sant'Angelo.
G.A. Alberti, writing in 1749, says "Le Girandole altro non sono, che canne di
carta cariche di certa mistura legate, ed attaccate attorno ad una legger ruota
di legno inserita in un ferro pel centro di essa in modo, che abbruciando la
mistura delle canne, e non potendo partirsi, fanno girare la ruota con tal
velocità, che il fuoco comparisce all'occhio continuato attorno di essa, e dal
girare che fa credo sia venuto il nome di girandola."
This I construe, "girandole are nothing more than paper tubes charged wth a
certain mixture tied and attached around the rim of a light wooden wheel turning
on a central iron (axle) such that the mixture in the tubes being ignited, and
they not being able to part themselves from it (i.e. fly off), the wheel is
caused to turn with such velocity that the fire appears continuous around it s
circumference, and from this I believe comes the name of girandola." In other
words, the article described is an ordinary wheel. This description is found on
p. 78, and the first figure, No. 138 (plate X), cited, shows an ordinary
vertical wheel. Subsequent text describes, and subsquent figures illustrate,
various wheels both horizontal and vertical, carrying various decorations, but
none of a rising or flying kind.
The earliest description I have seen of a flying wheel (in other words, a
"girandola" in the sense that most people understand the term today) is in an
undated ms of 19th century origins. I identify it as 19th century because it
prescribes chlorate colors for garnishments of the wheels, as well as on the
basis of its having been written on wove paper and in a hand that bespeaks 19th
century origins.

Post by rwebb
I recall that someone (I think Tom Dimmock) some time ago was looking for
pieces of history of girandola's. Tom, if you do not yet have it, I can
recommend to look into Suzanne Boorsch's "Fireworks! Four centuries of
Pyrotechnics in Prints & Drawings", The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin,
2000. If you go to page 38 you will read about the Girandola at Castel
Sant'Angelo, 1579. But, perhaps this is old news.
Happy New Year,
Rutger Webb