Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 21, 1910.djvu/200

170 of Purgatory. They are generally manacled. Some of them have ropes round their necks, and in one instance at least there is, in a sort of inset in the scene in Purgatory, a representation of the execution by hanging. The Decollati in turn are praying from Purgatory to the Virgin and Child shown frequently just above them. The date of the miracle or answer to prayer usually appears beneath the drawing, together with the initials V. F. R. (Voto fatto, ricevuto) or V. F. G. A. (Voto fatto, grazia avuta).

The characteristic Sicilian vehicle is a light cart mounted on two wheels and coloured a bright yellow. It is a conspicuous object everywhere, and is often elaborately carved. On the sides and tailboard are painted scenes from the history and traditions of the island. Photographs of two of these carts are shown in Plates IX. and X. The second of them is adorned with paintings of the Decollati. It is a sufficient witness to the popularity of the cult.

My attention was first directed to the cult by the writings of Dr. Pitrè, the eminent recorder of Sicilian traditions, whose Biblioteca delle Tradizioni Popolari Siciliane is one of the most highly prized treasures of students of folklore. From that source the additional particulars I am about to give are drawn.

The veneration of the souls of departed malefactors is by no means confined to Palermo and its neighbourhood. On the contrary, it is known from Acireale on the east coast to Trapani at the extreme west. Its shrines are found in many a commune all over the island, even to Noto in the far south. But the most famous of all is the church at Palermo. Palermo has been the seat of government since the Saracen Conquest, and there naturally what was called justice claimed its most abundant hecatombs. The executions were public. They were surrounded with every circumstance calculated to attract the sympathy of the crowd. There were several places of execution in and around the city. One of them was on