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are
the craftsmen who make the brass horses and other ornaments in metal. The
work of the ottonài is prominent in numerous and diverse parts of
the boat: the canòni (flower holders, and the lights at the bow
and stern of the gondola); the feràl or faràl, the
overhanging light in welded brass plate; the decorations on the upper part
of the stern lama, whose shape and style are carefully chosen by
the gondolier. The
objects which the ottonài and fonditori are most famous for
are the cavài, a symmetrical pair of seahorses which decorate the
central part of the two sides of the gondola. They are called cavài (horses),
but their shape can refer to a vast and original repertoire of subjects in
which the marine elements are often combined with those of the animal
kingdom or mythical beasts: the head, but also sometimes the body, can be
that of a horse, a dolphin, a bird of prey, a dragon, a griffin, a triton
or a sea nymph. At one time,
every important family had its own particular ‘seahorse’. Today there
are small, medium and large models depending on the degree of decoration
of the gondola. Of the thirteen fonderie present in Venice before
the Second World War, only one remains in the city. |
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The casting is carried out using an ancient technique: ‘a staffa’ (stirrup). The stirrup, also known as a ‘libro’ (book), is a box filled with very fine sand, known as ‘French sand’, in which the model is impressed. After the model is removed and the ‘book’ is closed, the brass or bronze is poured inside. The rough form (from which the larger residues of the fusion are removed with a chisel) is worked by hand in the workshop using files and chisels of various sizes, grain and thickness. The thinnest chisels are used to create the details such as the curls of hair or the features of a face. The next stage is grinding and polishing, which today is often carried out by machine. The cast objects can also be darkened or coated using chemical baths. The ottonài were part of the Guild of Turners. References to them can be found in thirteenth-century Capitolari (statutes). |
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associazione 'el felze' - san marco 430 - 30123 venezia - italy |  |