House number 48 in Via il Prato is much more than a simple old door.
That very wood portal conceals the Brindellone, the wooden float pulled by oxen leading the local Easter parade every year.
The Brindellone is a platform for sparks and firework shows symbolizing the descent of the holy fire blasting over the city and spectators of the parade.
The name, now fully belonging to the Florentine dialect to indicate a slob, a drunkard, is inspired by another float, the one used for the ancient feast of Saint John the Baptist. Standing on the float dedicated to the patron saint of Florence, an actor always played the role of the saint wearing a camel fur, and due to his shabby aspect and the excessive wine drank before his “performance”, he was called brindellone.
The name was thus taken on by the floats of the modern celebration, although today there is only one left, soberly in its shelter.
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