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BULLRING
- For the retail complex in Birmingham, UK, see Bull Ring, Birmingham
Málaga's bullring is tellingly nestled in the heart of the city.
A bullring (Spanish-plaza de toros) is an arena where bullfighting is performed. Bullrings are often associated with Spain, but they can also be found in neighboring countries and the New World. Bullrings are often historic and culturally significant centers that bear many structural similarities to the Roman amphitheatre.
Common Structure
The classic bullring is an enclosed, roughly circular ampitheatre with tiered rows of stands that surround an open central space. The open space forms the arena or ruedo, a field of densely packed earth that is the stage for the bullfight. Also on the ground level, the central arena is surrounded by a staging area where the bullfighters prepare and take refuge, called the callejón (alley). The cajellón is separated from the arena by a wall or other structure, usually made of wood and roughly 140 cm high. The partition wall has doors for the entrance and exit of the bull (puerta de los toriles) and human participants (puerta de cuadrilla), although the form, number, and placement of these doors will vary from one bullring to another. The walls also have a type of stirrup or foothold that aids in crossing over to the central arena, and sometimes stirrups on the arena side as well; these are used mostly by event staff if they need to intervene quickly in the case of an emergency.
Architectural origins
Bullrings evolved as specialized sporting arenas hand-in-hand with the sport that demanded them. Many of the ancient Roman ampitheatres had characteristics that can been seen in the bullrings of today (in fact the ring in Nimes, France, is a Roman artifact), and the origin of bullfighting is very closely related to certain Roman traditions. In the formative years of the sport on the Iberian peninsula, those Roman enclosures were not commonly utilized for bullfighting events. Back when bullfighting festivals were conducted principally on horseback, the spectacle was a more public affair that took place in the city's open plaza area. It was only later, when bullfights were conducted principally by men on foot, that the public needed a structure to house them appropriately. Not only did the crowd need special seating to view the spectacle, they also needed a structure to contain the general disorder that reigned at festivals during the heyday of such legendary figures as Costillares, Pedro Romero y Pepe-Hillo. In these early days, the circular form was not to be taken for granted. When La Maestranza bullring in Sevilla was authorized for construction in 1730 specifically to house bullfights, the original plans called for a rectangular arena for the first three years, only later to be changed to a circular form. Another circular plaza was begun in Ronda in 1754, and it featured its first bullfights in 1782.
Bullrings of the world
The most famous bullrings in the world are La Real Maestranza in Seville and Las Ventas in Madrid, Spain. The main bullrings are usually found in Spain, southern France and Portugal, and in former Spanish colonies in the New World countries of Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, and Peru. Some include:
External links
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