HOW ARE THE PASOS PREPARED FOR THE HOLY WEEK IN CÓRDOBA (SPAIN)?

      Photo of  Virgen de los Dolores made by Rafael Carmona.
      Black and white photo made by Valentín Moyano.

Holy Week is coming and I would like to write a post about the pasos of the Holy Week and about the work of the capataces, contraguías and costaleros. People could think that it is an easy work, but it isn't. Of course, all that work is made with a great devotion. I've always liked the Holy Week and I take part of the Brotherhood of los Dolores. I am going to focusize this post in the paso of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores, its capataz Antonio Cuenca will give me the information. Let's go.

The capataces (Antonio Cuenca and Juan Carlos Avalos) and contraguías (Antonio Rivera and Juan Magaña) meet after Christmas in order to date the igualá and ensayos.

What is the igualá?

In the igualá, all the costaleros are convocated to measure them from the neck to the feet (in order to ubicate them in a trabajadera). The trabajaderas are horizontal wooden boards located under the paso that are used by the costaleros to carry it. All the pasos haven't the same number of trabajaderas. The paso of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores has seven trabajaderas. Each trabajadera is carried by five costaleros. To sum up, this paso has 35 costaleros. The costaleros perform diferent positions: pateros, costeros, fijadores y corrientes. They tend to have two cuadrillas, so the costaleros can change and rest.

What are the ensayos?

In each brotherhood, the ensayos are different, in this case, there will take place in four fridays. In them, they put weight on the mesa de salida and the costaleros carry it. The weight simulates the weight of the paso in the day of the procession. During the ensayos, the cuadrilla practices the way of walk, listening to the marchas that will be played on Good Friday.

On Sábado de Pasión, the images are traslated from the church to the exit place.

On Good Thurday, the costaleros are convocated in order to carry out the retranqueo (in the retranqueo, the costaleros shake strongly the paso to check that the elements of the paso are well held).

HERMANDAD DE LOS DOLORES

Good Friday

On Good Friday, the costaleros are convocated two hours before the procession. The capataces will tell them when they have to enter or get out of the paso. On this day, the costaleros of this paso, will wear black clothes. The capataces will wear black suit.

As you can see, it is a meditated, well-studied work, in which everybody participates, giving as a result, a perfect and sincronized work. The costaleros contribute with their effort, love and faith and the capataces and contraguías, with their skills, devotion and common sense, existing a perfect balance.