A Pilgrimage to the Temple of Fortune

A couple of hours from Deruta on the Adriatic see there is a Roman town called "Fano" (established 207 b.C.).

The meaning of the word comes from "Fanum Fortunae", temple of fortune in Latin. Indeed the town was at the end of the famous Roman road called "Flaminia".

From Fano on travellers were in the hands of the Fortune because they would face the open sea. Many Roman monuments and buildings withstand the passing of time in Fano, such as the arch of Emperor August. Walking in the streets of Fano is very nice and breathing the breeze coming from the sea is very healthy.

As a tradition Fano is the preferred seaside of the people from our region, Umbria, maybe because this town has old Umbrian origins. The Umbrians were a population of Italic origin that settled in central Italy in the Second Millennium b.C.

In the beginning their properties went from the River Tiber Valley to the Adriatic sea, Tuscany, Romagna and the Padana Valley. Then the Etruscans limited the territory of the Umbrians to the East valley of the River Tiber.

We are proud to be Umbrians in Deruta. Umbria is our region.

Photo: Rare example of the Umbrian language - discovered in the 15th century Re: Tabulae Iguvinae (3rd-1st century b.C.).

May 22: Feast of Saint Rita of Cascia

May 22nd is the day celebrating St. Rita of Cascia.

(1386-1456). She is considered as the "Santa degli impossibili" (The Saint of the Impossible).

When we have a problem that cannot be solved in any way we pray St.Rita.

The sacred flower of St. Rita is the rose.

In the town of Deruta until recent years on this day we used to set up cars with red roses from our gardens and leave the main Church uptown in a long line of cars. On top of the line a small truck with our priest and the plaster statue of St. Rita.

In the past families were very devoted to their Saints. As a tradition there are red roses in many gardens in Deruta to celebrate this event.

The religious procession passed through the main streets of Deruta and went back to the St. Francis Church. The Statue of the Saint is permanently part of the Church in Deruta.

St.Rita is a very popular Saint in Italy.

Italian Saying: "La processione da dove esce rientra" (tr. the procession always goes back to where it started" - moral: What you do you receive back).

Text in English: Fr. Alban Butler, Lives of the Saints, Tan B. and P., Inc. 1995 with Imprimatur

Deruta patterns: The Singing Rooster

Giuliano de' Medici was awakened by a rooster

and for one time could escape murder.

At CAMA DERUTA one of the traditional patterns was the green rooster. We have always wondered about its origins, especially if we think of pitchers shaped as roosters.

The story we hear in the States is that Giuliano de' Medici from Florence in the Renaissance period was awakened by a rooster and therefore he could escape being murdered.

The story is probably true because Giuliano de' Medici went under several attempts of murder in the city of Florence as well as in the countryside, where he had been hiding from enemies.


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Giuliano de' Medici was the brother of the famous Lorenzo de' Medici and he was only sixteen when their father Piero died.

Indeed the two brothers took over the power in the city of Florence right after their father's death and opponent parties tried to kill them several times.

In 1478  the "Pazzi" family conspired against Giuliano and Lorenzo in repeated attempts to eradicate their power. On one of these occasions, Giuliano was murdered in the Cathedral of Florence, and his brother Lorenzo was left wounded. Giuliano was only 25 years old when he died.

Coat of arms of Giuliano de'
Medici's family. 

The reaction of the city of Florence was unexpected towards conspirators. The population of Florence got furious and attacked the Pazzi family's members as well as their accomplices with heavy consequences. As a result, the Medici family remained in power. 

However, with the death of Giuliano de' Medici, the flourishing Renaissance world of arts lost one of his most passionate and youngest partons. 

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If we think of Greek mythology , the rooster is the sacred symbol of Mercury and we feel this adds meaning to our curiosity: Rooster=green= good luck. Green is also the color of Venus, it means beauty.

The singing rooster can be found on vintage Deruta plates with a note of the pentagram ("DO di petto= C in English). Color variations of the rooster pattern are red and blue. But green is still the predominant color. 

This pattern is also known as the "Orvieto" pattern because it is dedicated to the town of Orvieto, where there is a ceramics tradition producing a distinctive green leaves pattern. Deruta artists added the rooster to the original Orvieto leaves pattern in the 1920s, a very fertile revival period of Deruta ceramics. The Green Rooster pattern is the most medieval of all Deruta patterns because it carries fewer colors than the Renaissance traditional patterns, namely Ricco Deruta and Raffaellesco. 

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The Cama rooster pattern is the best! It is painted by my father Renato who has learned from the great artists of Deruta. The rooster is lively just like my father's personality. There is lots of love in it! Renato Niccacci is also the artist of Arabesco Verde and Siena black and white designs.

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Happy Mother's Day!

May 9, 2010

Happy Mother's Day to all our readers.

"Madonna teaching the Holy Child to read" by Italian Artist Pintoricchio, Perugia 1452-Siena 1513.

Beautiful Renaissance work of art! Deruta took inspiration from Pintoricchio, local artist born in Perugia. He died in Siena where he left a wonderful example of his art in the Cathedral of Siena, the "Libreria Piccolomini" that he painted in 1505. The Library has been preserved in its integrity until the present times. It is breathtaking. It is worth the visit.

(photo credit: Philadelphia Museum of Art, John J. Johnson Collection)

May 5th, 2010: Foundation of Friends of Cama

(Mercury, a detail from the "Primavera" by Italian artist Sandro Botticelli - 1445-1510)

A large number of our friends and customers in the United States have created a fan club in California called "Friends of Cama" through which they are assisting CAMA in the transition time to innovative business solutions.

Friends of Cama are organizing a special event for Cama in the Fall to celebrate a new future together.

In mythology, the month of May stands under the protection of Mercury, the god of business, the perfect month for the creation of a new business vision for Cama Deruta. Mercury's sacred animal is the fortunate rooster.

At Cama we would like to send our sincere thanks to all our customers for their loyalty and support throughout the years.

Follow the Cama happy ending story on the facebook page and twitter ! We would be happy to welcome you as a new Friend of Cama. Join us with just a click.


Cama Deruta, a business that goes beyond business.

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- Original Posts by Roberta Niccacci -

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