Nothe heart of Maira Valleyin Piedmont, rises Elvaa tiny town that holds an incredible history: that of hair hunters. Blonde, black, brown: At the end of the nineteenth century, in the middle of the Piedmontese valleys, hair became a precious currency of exchange. The men and women of Elva invented themselves a unique profession of its kind giving life to hair collectorssayings guinea pig (in Piedmontese) o pelassier (in Occitan). These hunters were all men, they left Elva at the beginning of autumn and traveled the Lombardy, Veneto and Friuli (poorer areas) looking for women and girls willing to have their hair cut in exchange for some money. Today, their history is preserved since Pels Museum of Elva.
From cut to wig: the art of pelassier
“They usually convinced the women they met to trade their hair for a remnant or an apron, or to sell it,” she explains Sescia Mantellipresident ofIlamoun cultural association to Mountain TV. «Beautiful hair was an emblem of femininity and women did not willingly part with their braids. It was poverty that drove them». Once back in Elva, the hair was worked in family workshops. Each lock was combed, selected and divided based on length, fineness and color, ready to become one fine wig. The finished braids were then shipped to wholesalers, who transformed them into luxury wigs, worn by lords, ladies and artists throughout Europe. Each lock thus had a second life, becoming a symbol of elegance and status.
The role of women in Elva
The hair collected by the husbands was sent to the village. Here the women washed them, combed them and separated them carefully, dividing them by color and length, before preparing them for sending to laboratories in Italy and abroad. Nothing was wasted. Even the smallest residues, the so-called penche pels – the hair that had gotten caught in the combs and brushes – was recovered, rolled around the fingers in small cocoons and worked with great attention. Mantelli says that it was a tiring and delicate job. The washing took place in wooden tubs lined with metal, with hot water, Marseille soap and soda. Women had to be quick and precise, because soda stiffened their hair, making it sharp. Sometimes they were also dyed, following market demands and current fashions.
Pels Museum: a tradition that has spanned the centuries
The hair trade in Valle Maira continued until the end of the seventies and also inspired literary works, such as the novel The cloud inventory by Franco Faggiani. The most precious? «White hair, difficult to find totally white. By candlelight, they placed them on the butter paper to create contrast and best divide whites, blacks and greys””, he always reveals Cloaks. Today, the Pels Museum preserves this history of effort, ingenuity and creativity. The six rooms of the museum they tell the challenges and achievements of the men and women of Elva, showing how it was possible to invent such a unique profession in the high mountains.
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