Last modified: 2009-11-21 by eugene ipavec
Keywords: spain | andalusia | cordoba | municipality | coat of arms | wolves: 2 (black) | wolf: passant | tree: mulberry | mulberry | coronet | ravens: 2 (black) |
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The municipality of El Carpio (4,591 inhabitants in 2008; 4,668 ha) is located in the valley of the Guadalquivir, 30 km east of Córdoba.
In Roman times, the current municipal territory was part of the municipality of Sacili Martialium; the area already produced a lot of grain, as evidenced by the remains of several estates ("villae") and silos. In 1240, the Moorish stronghold of Alcocer (Al-Qusayr) was reconquested by King Fernando III the Saint. Different members of the Méndez de Sotomayor involved in the reconquest were rewarded with domains taken from the former Moorish territory. In the beginning of the 14th century, Garci Méndez de Sotomayor could unite all these small domains in a single, big one. He built in 1325 a castle on a hill (locally, "carpio") and founded around it a village originally known as Onuba. The castle was subsequently suppressed, except its quadrangular tower, still known as Garci Méndez's Tower and nicknamed, together with the town, "The Mirador of the Guadalquivir." On 20 October 1559, King Philip II erected the Marquisate of El Carpio, granted to Diego López de Haro y Sotomayor, the 10th lord of El Carpio and the founder of the Andalusian horse bred. The 5th Marquis of El Carpio, Diego López de Haro y Sotomayor y de la Cueva, was granted the title of Grandee of Spain by Philip IV on 10 May 1640.
Source: Isabel Leña, "Diario Córdoba," 11 May 2003
Ivan Sache, 18 Jul 2009
The flag and arms of El Carpio were approved by the Municipal Council on 24 February 2005 and submitted on 25 February 2005 to the General Directorate of Local Administration, which confirmed them by Decree on 9 March 2005, published in the Andalusian official gazette (Boletín Oficial de la Junta de Andalucía, BOJA) No. 59 on 28 March 2005.
The relevant parts of the Decree are the following:
Coat of arms: Quartered shield. 1. Argent two wolves passant sable placed per pale; a border gules eight saltires or (Haro). 2. Argent three fesses checky four pieces or and gules, each charged with a cotice sable (Sotomayor). 3. Checky seven pieces azure eight pieces argent (Toledo). 4. Or, a mulberry tree vert surrounded by two ravens sable on its base; a border gules with eight saltires or (Xodar). The shield surmounted with a Marquis' coronet.Flag: Rectangular flag of 2.50 m x 1. 40 m, divided in three horizontal pieces, the central white, twice larger than the outer, which are yellow, and the coat of arms of the municipality incorporated into the central stripe.
The symbols should be registered on the Andalusian Register of Local Entities, with their official written description and graphics (as originally submitted, but unfortunately not appended to the Decree).
Source: BOJA, No. 59, p. 93, 28 Mar 2005
Ivan Sache, 18 Jul 2009
The 9th Scarpia festival (Days of Artistic Intervention in the Natural and Urban Space) takes place in El Carpio from 2 to 12 September 2009. Among the artistic projects sponsored by the festival, "Bandera"(Flag), by the Cordóba-born artist Jesús Pedraza, consists in the hoisting of a "banknote flag" on the Garci Méndez' tower, replacing the municipal flag usually hoisted there.
Each day, a different flag representing a banknote of either 5, 10, 20 or 50 € will be hoisted on the tower. At the end of the festival, a total sum of 300 € will have been "hoisted," representing the funds allocated to the installation. The project aims at highlighting the restrictions imposed to creation by the art market.
Source: Scarpia 2009 website, with photos of the 5 € banknote flag
Ivan Sache, 11 Sep 2009