the most recent
in all the caves
the witnesses:
> 2021-2022 THE SON OF THE FATHER
> [2020-2021]
> 2019-2020 THE INSTRUMENT
> 2018-2019 THE ANGEL of lost things
> 2017-2018 THE SIGN
> 2016-2017 THE FORTY DAYS
the narrations:
> 2015-2016 THE SCANDAL MAN
> 2014-2015 FRANCIS' ALTAR
> 2013-2014 THE ANGEL of Miriàm
mystical Nativities:
> 2012-2013 THE ALLIANCE
> 2011-2012 JOSEPH'S MYSTERY
> 2010-2011 THE WOLF ANT THE LAMB
in the big cave
the crib and the dioramas:
> 2009-2010 THE ESSENES - the sons of light
> 2008-2009 THE ANGEL - 3rd edition
dreamlike Nativities:
> 2007-2008 BET LEHM - House of Bread
> 2006-2007 LILITH - the first Eve
the "new Nativities":
> 2005-2006 THE CARAVANSERAI- 2nd edition
> 2004-2005 BÉÈR - the well
> 2003-2004 THE ANGEL - 2nd edition
in the first caves
the third millennium:
> 2002-'03 SALOMÈ - the unbelieving midwife
> 2001-'02 THE MARKET
Jubilee trilogy:
> 2000-'01 THE PILGRIM KINGS
> 1999-2000 SABBATH - the Jewish Saturday
> 1998-'99 THE ANGEL
historical research:
> 1997-'98 THE CARAVANSERAI
> 1996-'97 THE HOSPITALITY OF THE POOR
the crib grows:
> 1995-'96 THE NOISE OF THE CRAFTS
> 1994-'95 THE THREE KINGS' GIFTS
only in the well
three-dimensional cribs:
> 1993-'94 THE FAMILY
> 1992-'93 THE COMET
> 1991-'92 THE EARTH AND THE SKY
the first Nativities:
> 1990-'91 THE FIRMAMENT
> 1989-'90 PEACE ON HEART
2024-2025
THE MORNING ANGEL
The 35th Nativity in the Well continued the cycle of ‘excluded’ narratives, in which the Nativity is narrated by characters who, for various reasons, could not witness it live.
For the 2024-2025 edition, we followed the story of the morning angel, who was so bright that he was visible even after the sun had risen: his name was Lucifer and he was so proud that he dared to rebel against his own creator.
We have retraced his many attempts to see the plan for the Salvation of mankind fail, with the desire to prove to God how much better angels were than men.
The biblical character, combined with myths and timeless tales, revisited in the style of the Nativity of the Well of the Quarry, with a surprise ending in a dreamlike scenario and frequent references to the contemporary world.
From 23 December 2024 to 12 January 2025
1. Do you know the story of the morning angel? He was called that because he was brighter than all the stars in the sky, so much so that he was visible even after the sun rose. He was the most beautiful angel that God had created; his name was Lucifer, which means ‘light-bringer’.
2. Imagine what the beautiful Lucifer must have felt when he discovered that God intended to populate the Earthly Paradise with men: limited creatures, anchored to the ground and unable to fly, with two paws instead of wings. Wouldn’t you have felt offended, hurt, outraged as well? Wouldn’t you have wanted to rebel against such wickedness?
3. Lucifer hoped to drag the other angels into his fight against the Almighty, but he was left alone. He was cast out of Paradise and relegated to the depths of underworld. The most splendid of angels was confined forever in darkness, while God populated the Earth with speaking animals created ‘in His image and likeness’. Who knows how much bitterness!
4. The fallen angel could not think of letting humanity off the hook. He had to show God how limited those beings were: he transformed into a serpent and challenged them to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. It was certainly not difficult to convince those simpletons, but God did not annihilate them as Lucifer had hoped, limiting Himself to expelling them from Eden.
5. Lucifer has tempted men many times, seducing them to the point of making them kill each other, rob each other, lie to each other, betray each other, and even repudiate God, replacing Him with fame, pleasure, wealth, prestige… But nothing has ever been enough to convince the Almighty to rid Himself of them permanently and assign the world to the angels.
6. Not only did God not extinguish all men, but He even sent an angel to predict to one of them, a certain Mary, that she would give birth to a child who would save them all, bringing them back to a new Earthly Paradise. The Almighty had determined that His beloved son would be a little human. Not an angel, but a whimpering baby! And the heavenly hosts were relegated only to being helpless messengers between God and humanity. A madness for the morning angel, don’t you think?
7. Of course, Lucifer did everything he could to ensure that the child would never see the light. Dressed as a priest, he advised Zechariah to make Mary abort, because she carried in her womb the fruit of a betrayal. He appeared in a dream to Joseph asking him to repudiate that adulterous wife and to kill that bastard as soon as he was born. Under the guise of a seer, he predicted to Herod that soon the king who would dethrone him would be born and urged him to get rid of him before it became known. He had to leave nothing unattempted.
8. Despite the sabotage attempts, ‘the time came for her child to be born’ and Lucifer did everything he could to ensure that Mary and Joseph found no place in any inn. They were forced to take refuge in a cave, underground, in his kingdom. There it would have been easy for him to suck the newborn child into the underworld and prove who among them was more powerful. But three magicians, coming from very far away, with gold, frankincense, and myrrh, channeled against Lucifer the power of the three elements: Air, Water, and Fire.* All the other angels also protected that odd illegitimate family with their light. God preferred a defenseless child to the perfection and splendor of His most beautiful angel.
* In classical Jewish tradition, the fundamental elements were only three: the earth was conceived as the crucible in which air, water, and fire mix to create all other elements.
9. Thus ended the story of the rebellious angel, annihilated by a newborn and by the meek and obedient girl who declared herself ‘handmaiden of the Lord’.
You all know how the story continued: now it is Mary who is called ‘Morning Star’ and her son Jesus ‘Light of the World’.
I really hope that you enjoyed my story and that you can return serenely to your homes, in the glory of the Lord, who since then has had no rivals.
With sincere affection.
A friend of yours.
The greatest trick Lucifer ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist (Charles Baudelaire – The Generous Gambler)
A snake can change its skin but not its disposition (ancient Persian proverb)
Curiosities
- Cattelan’s apple: the crib scenes were interspersed with installations of famous and iconic works of contemporary art, from Yves Klein’s monochromes to Lucio Fontana’s cut-outs, from Umbrian Alberto Burri’s plastics to Maurizio Cattelan’s much-talked-about ‘Comedian’, where the banana was replaced by the apple of Eden
- The haters: spurred on by a youtuber as conspiracy-minded as he is uninformed, several of his followers protested, obviously without having seen our nativity scene, sending numerous e-mails to us and to the bishop of Orvieto, guilty, according to them, of having allowed the figure of Lucifer to be included in a nativity scene set up, audite audite, in St. Patrick’s Well!
- Networked Museums: the nativity scene was set up as part of the events of the ‘Networked Museums for the Territory 2024’ project, realised with the contribution of the Umbria Region
Concept – settting up – characters – graphics: Marco Sciarra | speleological set up inside the Pozzo della Cava: Filippo Baldini & TreeClimbing Team B | animatronic characters: Andrea Giomaro | scenography: Marco Sciarra – Francesca Montanari – Filippo Sciarra | faces, incarnations and make-up: Andrea Giomaro – Samantha Rose-Harker – David Bracci – Sara Catanzaro – Carlo Diamantini – Special Makeup Studio – Creature Studios – Marco Sciarra | Sculpture of exploded Lucifer: Filippo Sciarra | Translation help: Matteo Sciarra | Photos: Marco Mandini – Federico Burla (& Co. )