Beheading bulls
Lent, leading up to Easter, is a period of abstinence and repentance.
Forty days, where the basic rule is that if it's fun, it's probably not allowed.
Carnival originated, at least in part, as a reaction to the meagre forty days, when meat, wine, cakes, and rich foods in general were off the menu.
Hence, we have the fat week leading up to Ash Wednesday, which is the first day of Lent.
Shrove Tuesday is the last day of the carnival — Mardi Gras for the French inclined, martedi grasso in Italy, both meaning Fat Tuesday — but the preceding Thursday was also an important feast.
In Venice, this was the Feast of Giovedì Grasso, which was celebrated in grand style in the Piazzetta, the smaller part of Piazza San Marco near the two columns.
#1500s #1600s #1700s #Venezia #Venice
Read more here: https://venetianstories.com/venetian-story/beheading-bulls/