Moro heads
The history, meaning and legend of the Moro Heads.
If you are interested in the history of the Moro Heads, this article will provide you with all the information you need. Discover the meaning of these heads and the legend that surrounds them, which has ancient and fascinating roots.
Origin and history of the Moro heads.
The Teste di Moro are ceramic or glass objects that represent the head of a black man with a turban on his head. These objects have a long history dating back to the period of Arab domination in Sicily, when the Arabs brought with them the culture and art of ceramics. Moro heads were originally used as containers for spices and perfumes, but over time they have become very popular decorative objects. Today, the Moorish heads are considered a symbol of Sicilian culture and are often used as souvenirs or as objects of art.
Moro heads
Symbols of the Sicilian island, they are also used as precious ceramic vases, design objects but hide a fascinating story of love and jealousy.
We can find them in living rooms, well-kept gardens, balconies. The dark brown heads are vases, which reproduce the face of a man and a woman. Hand-painted ceramic works of art by the best Sicilian artisans and today they are one of the best known symbols of the island.
The most important city for their creation is Caltagirone, where we find the best craftsmen able to make these vases real works of art. There are various types, colors and shapes. Over the years the craftsmen have refined their technique more and more and from the classic Testa di Moro, already beautiful, they have also created the modern Testa di Moro, making it even more fascinating and also decorative objects for the home.
At Roh you will find several Moor's Heads coming directly from the mother city of Caltagirone ceramics.
Let's take a very short leap into history to understand the legend behind the Moro heads
Around the year 1000, in the Arab quarter of Palermo, a beautiful Sicilian who loves taking care of her plants which she displays on her balcony, saw a young and muscular Moro soldier pass by, who in turn looked up and saw her watering her green plants. plant. He falls in love with her immediately and declares himself with great ardor, swearing his love. Struck by that face and that body carved in ebony, she reciprocates with equal passion and so they become lovers.
The young woman discovered that her beautiful and beloved Moro would have to return to his city where a wife and children were waiting for him.
Wounded and blinded by pain, the young woman was unable to accept the harsh reality and so she embarked on the path of revenge. While he slept, she beheaded him. In this way the woman was convinced that he would always and only be hers.
He made a sort of vase out of the head and chose to plant a Basil plant, the herb of kings, which he watered every day with his tears. The neighbors were enveloped in the scent of that exceptional basil plant and looked at that particular container with envy. It was then that everyone asked the local artisans to make vases in the shape of a dark brown hoping to have the same luck.
There is also a second version of the legend which explains why the Sicilian Moro Heads are created and arranged in pairs: a man and a woman. Same date, same place, same protagonists but the plot changes. The beautiful Sicilian is of noble origins and has been living in clandestine love for some time with an attractive dark-haired man. Once the plot is discovered, the scandal breaks out which certainly could not be accepted by a family of rank. To remedy the dishonor, the woman's family decides to have the two lovers killed by placing the two heads on the balcony of the noble palace. For this reason the Sicilian Moorish Heads would be made in pairs in memory of the two murdered lovers.
We at Rohome have chosen one of the most important and well-known brands in the world in the production of dark brown heads, Verus.
We chose them because the company continues to draw lifeblood from the rich cultural baggage of Caltagirone majolica and returns a reading of the territory and of the aesthetically fascinating object, suitable for contemporary design lines and at the same time faithful to traditional shapes and materials . The Verus-branded ceramics are in perfect balance between majesty and essentiality: a successful marriage in the uniqueness of each handcrafted piece.
The success of their experiments on ceramics speaks for itself: the Mori di Verus have long gone beyond the borders of Caltagirone and are widely appreciated and distributed both in Italy and abroad.
We are waiting for you in our online shop www.rohome.it Made in Sicily section to discover the collection of modern and also classic Moor's Heads.