A Chinese New Year ritual of breaking a clay ox became the piñata

world cultures & travelWikipedia14th century · China and Europe

A Chinese New Year ritual of breaking a clay ox became the piñata

the gist

The piñata descends from a Chinese New Year ritual in which a clay ox filled with five kinds of seeds was struck with colored sticks to bring a good growing season, and its ashes were kept for luck. The custom reached Europe in the 14th century, where it was tied to Lent and became part of Carnival in Italy. Spanish clay pots were later decorated with ribbons and paper, and the tradition crossed to Mexico in the 16th century, where it met an Aztec custom of breaking pots as offerings. In 1586 Augustinian monks in Acolman used piñatas for evangelism, giving the seven points the meaning of the seven deadly sins.

so what

The piñata shows how a single custom can travel across continents and change meaning at each stop, from agricultural luck to Catholic teaching to modern party. Its origin is uncertain, so the Marco Polo link remains a claim rather than a settled fact.

fun fact

The largest traditional seven-pointed piñata, built in Tepatitlán in 2010, measures 11.2 meters.

Hampi was once one of the world's largest cities, until its Vijayanagara capital was destroyed in 1565

the gist

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.

how it works

The city was built around a fortified core with temples, markets and water structures along the river, supplied by an extensive network of roads and waterworks. When the empire fell, the city was not rebuilt, so its stone monuments were left standing.

so what

Hampi shows how quickly a great city can vanish after a military defeat, and how a ruined capital can remain sacred. Its ruins give historians a view of medieval South Asia that few other sites can match.

fun fact

The name Hampi comes from Pampa, an old name for the Tungabhadra River.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

2 min

politicsshortCNA2:01

False allegations about Singapore’s hand in Indonesia’s markets and a made-up meeting

from CNA

CNA Verify has found close to 400 posts pushing falsehoods tying Singapore to Indonesia’s stock market rout and to a secret meeting that never took place. Together, they drew nearly 12 million views, and some were circulated by accounts that appeared to be working in concert, across multiple social media platforms.

Here’s how the disinformation campaign targeting Singapore was uncovered.

on YouTube: CNA ↗