The vibrant colours that adorn the Bullrings of Spain.
Each bullfight comprises six bulls and three matadors,
each of whom fights two bulls. The bulls are specially bred fighting
bulls, usually from the same bloodline and are not less than four
years old with a weight somewhere between 500 and 800 kilos. They
must never have faced a man on foot before they enter the bullring.
The reason being that if this is the case, they may charge the man,
instead of the cape. The selection of bulls is determined by drawing
lots on the morning of the corrida. The toreros perform in order
of seniority with the senior matador going first and fourth, the
second-ranked matador second and fifth and the least experienced
fighting third and sixth. If a matador is gored and unable to continue,
the senior matador must take his place and complete the fight. Each
bullfight is divided into three stages of thirds and lasts for around
20 minutes. A corrida starts with a parade of all the contestants
and bailiffs dressed in 17th century costume, who salute the president
of the fight. The president is an important official who controls
the fight and can award trophies to a matador who performs well.
A trumpet is blown to announce the first fight when the matador
and his team enter the ring, and to signal the end of each stage.
The bailiffs receive the key to the gate which is thrown to them
by the president of the bullfight, through which the bulls enter
the ring. The president then waves a white handkerchief to signal
the entrance of the first bull into the ring.
Preliminary Phase
During the preliminary phase the footmen, peones
or capeadores work the bull with large magenta and gold capes while
carefully appraising its agility, intelligence, dangers, sight and,
most importantly, its strength. It's very important for the matador
to determine the animal's qualities such as whether it favours one
horn or the other (e.g. hooks to the left) or swings its horns up
at the end of each pass. Sometimes a bull is reluctant to fight
in which case it will be tactfully withdrawn on the sign of a green
handkerchief from the president.
First stage
This is when the picadores, mounted on padded and
blindfolded horses provoke the bull to attack them. The aim is to
plunge their lance into the bull's neck thus weakening its strong
neck muscles. This causes it to lower its head without which the
matador couldn't perform the coup de grace in the final part of
the fight
Second stage
When the bull has been sufficiently weakened by
the picadores, the next stage commences, during which barbed darts
decorated with colourful ribbons are placed in the bull's neck.
The banderillero, carrying a banderilla in each hand, runs towards
the charging bull at an angle and places the banderillas in its
neck. These are not supposed to weaken the bull but rather correct
any tendency to hook, regulate the carriage of the head and slow
it down.
Final stages
The final stage of a bullfight is called the suerte/tercio
del muerte and ends with the death of the bull. It begins with the
matador removing his hat, saluting the president and asking for
permission to perform and kill the bull. He may dedicate the bull
to somebody in the crown. Sometimes the matador will toss his hat
over his head, if it lands upside down, it is supposed to be bad
luck. The matador creates a series of passes with his red cape (of
which there are 40), bringing the animal closer to his body. The
two most basic passes include the right handed pass in which the
sword is used to expand the cloth and the left handed 'natural'.
After each pass the crowd usually shouts Olé!.
The kill
When the matador realises the bull is weak and unable
to charge much longer he will reach for his killing sword and seek
to manoeuvre it directly in front of him with its head down, so
that he can administer the death stroke. The matador looks down
the sword to sight the target, leans over the horns and attempts
to insert it between the cervical vertebra and into the bull's heart.
Finale
If the matador has performed well and made a quick,
clean kill he will be applauded, do a lap of honour and be showered
with flowers, hats, cushions and anything else to hand. The crowd
demonstrates its approval of a fight by waving white handkerchiefs
which are a signal to the president to award the matador a trophy,
such as an ear or tail. If the bull has put up a good fight, its
carcass will also receive a lap of honour and very occasionally
if a bull is exceptionally brave or strong and the matador is unable
to kill it, it may be spared and allowed to return to its stud farm
to live out its life in peace.
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