The Corpus Christi carpet in the Plaza del Town Hall of La Orotava It will be exhibited tomorrow with the damage caused by the rain that fell the day before yesterday and which significantly affected the tapestries on the sides. The carpet makers worked hard yesterday to complete the outline of these tapestries and to finish the central one, which remains in perfect condition by being protected by a tent while it rained more than 20 liters per square meter for six hours since early Monday afternoon. . Tent that was removed during yesterday afternoon to be able to finish the tapestry.
The images of María Auxiliadora and San Isidro Labrador cannot be repaired on the sides of the great carpet of Corpus Orotavense because the carpet makers do not have material time to correct the damage caused by water and those that would occur when stepping on the work carried out during more than 40 days.
The carpet makers are working against the clock to finish the central tapestry, which will have a large border of flowers around it, made with flowers such as lilies and lilies. It is prolonged forming a letter A, in recognition of the Virgin Mary Help of Christians, while the M, for Mary, is made in orange colors. In addition, that letter is the symbology of a tape of the magician’s wands.
The shape of the letter M also appears in the lower part of the design, “providing this part with greater strength by the use of colors, vertically, which represent the typical skirt of the magicians of La Orotava”. This reference to traditional clothing is also a continuation of last year’s design, when some details of the wizard vest appeared.
At the top of the large tapestry you can see another symbol of the Villa: «A white line, which forms the mat for the side tapestries, joins the triangular top, forming a simple shape that represents the City Hall building».
The central element of this design will be the monumental tabernacle of the main chapel of the Parish of Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, a neoclassical element that will be 200 years old in 2023. It was built in Giuseppe Gaggini’s workshop in Genoa (Italy) with materials such as marble and jasper.
That was the idea exposed in the presentation of the great tapestry of lands of the Teide that each year occupies almost a thousand square meters of the Plaza del Consistorio de La Orotava. A work of religious art that this year will also offer a social and environmental message. As has been the case since 2019, old materials that fell into disuse are used in this ephemeral art exhibition and some flowers, limpet and burgado shells, as well as dates and eucalyptus bags will once again be seen in the square.. Again, the black will be put by the ashes of the last volcanic eruption in Canary Islands.
The weather forecast indicates that in the coming days the risk of rain is very low and that the cloudiness will gradually move. The removal of the side tents occurred on Monday by decision of the Consistory and the carpet makers. It was a necessary measure to undertake the work that was lacking in order to conclude it in a timely manner. Last year it began to be removed on Tuesday and the carpet workers could not finish the tapestry until early Thursday morning.
Tomorrow, as is the tradition, the infra-octave of Corpus Christi will be held in La Orotava and this time a unique event will be experienced: the carpet is blurred. In 1942 the rain destroyed the work done and it was replaced by a “simpler” carpet.
