The origins of the Bautta ceremony have, however, differing and much earlier roots. Some of the figures are of pre-Christian origin, like the “Uomo Selvatico” (the “Wild Man” or the “Green Man”), whereas others have Christian roots, like the Devils and the Priest. Yet others represent scenes form more recent “everyday life”, such as the Captain, who leads the procession, and the Carabinieri or Policemen, who inevitably arrest the Robber who carries out a symbolic theft in each house. Other figures include the Ugly Ones (“I Brutti”), the Madmen (“I Matti”), the Epiphany Witch (“La Befana”), Father Christmas and the Young Spouses. The procession as a whole consists of a heterogeneous and picturesque combination of a thousand different figures reflecting the fantasies, dreams and fears of men and women from the past and from today.

The Bautta was a ceremony that was probably linked to the change from the coldest period of the year towards one where the days were becoming longer, a sort of premature celebration of the end of winter. There was also another factor associated with the organization of the ceremony,  namely that all the figures in the procession, even both spouses, were impersonated by single men, with women and married people being traditionally excluded. This seems to be connected on an old theatrical tradition in which women appeared on the stage only a few centuries ago, and in more modern and urban settings. There may well also have been a connection with certain initiation sessions for the young men of the community, analogous to the annual festivals for conscripts.

And so, early in the morning, when fingers were still freezing in the dry and icy cold, the procession would set off. Not a single one of the families in the scattered hamlets of Menarola could be left out of the route of the procession, which climbed up to over 1,000 metres to the highest of the houses that were inhabited all year around in the commune.
At every door, the families were called outside, nursery rhymes and songs were recited, and faces pulled. In the general confusion the Robber entered the house and left with the object of his  auspicious “theft” under his arm. The helmeted Carabinieri fired, the villain fell dramatically to the ground and the ill-gotten gains were recovered. The Robber then bounced up from the ground, ready for his next theft. Meanwhile the lady of the house gave something good to those in the procession, that had been previously prepared and put aside for the occasion.

In the course of the procession along the paths linking the different homesteads ,the Priest, accompanied by his Altarboys, made meaningless “sermons”, often in dog Latin. Meanwhile the young Spouses showed their fear through shrieks and hand gestures, trying to defend themselves from being molested by the Devils, who were dressed in red, with the tails of horses, the masks of large goats and with pincers to grab onlookers. The other figures marched forward each in their own “manner”, the Ugly Ones and the Madmen telling jokes and  playing tricks on passers-by, the Wilds Man   walking always a little on the side, between the path and the forest, and  the Captain conveying his commands with his sabre unsheathed. The result was a series of small-scale theatrical “events”, in which each “actor”, uninhibited and transformed from his normal self, discovered a second life distinct from his daily routine.

When it was time for Mass, the procession reached the church, so that the Epiphany could be celebrated. The church was real, and the priest was the real village priest.  But the Devils stood at the porch of the church and invited the onlookers to desert the mass, to take a sip of wine with them, and to help them in pestering the spouses and the girls who were present.

When the procession was finished, everyone went down into the valley.  In the revived version of the procession the practice has recently been developed of continuing the spectacle down in the valley, with the organisation of additional events for those who have not previously taken part in the ceremonies. These now include surgical operations carried out by Demented Doctors and unleashed Madmen who distribute little pieces of paper with jokes and puns, and poke fun at selected onlookers.

According to tradition, all the participants  in the procession then met to take part in a colossal banquet, which once upon a time was composed of the various types of food that had been handed over by all the families that had been visited, including cheese, flour for the polenta, chestnut paste, salami, and so on.

And here, on the valley floor, even the spectators can now take part in the gastronomic festivities, which, as everyone knows, are not lacking in the Valchiavenna. They are presumably tired but they have taken part in a spectacle which is now of an exceptional nature, not least because of the  organizational difficulties that are involved.

To conclude, the Bautta is obviously a ceremony with ancient origins, even without this being confirmed  by  more detailed ethnographic analysis, which so far has been generally lacking. It does seem, however, that this type of ceremony was once much more common in the Alpine region, albeit with many variants. In the complex form that we have described, so rich in different personalities, this type of ceremony is preserved in Menarola and in few other places. Something similar can still be found in Sardinia and also throughout the mountains of Central and Eastern Europe, among the Slavs of the Tatras and Carpathians where traditions are still strong. A similar ethnographic “fossil” can also be found in the Resia Valley in the Friuli region of Italy, not for nothing inhabited by families of Slav origin.

Now that this old tradition has been revived and maintained , you too can now again take part as itinerant spectators. To do so is to be exceptionally privileged.