The 'Norcini' in Rome: Six Centuries of a Masterly Presence

The present essay, the second in the series “The Norcia Historical Papers”, is devoted to the centuries-long history of the people from Norcia in Rome. Starting from the late fifteenth century, the so-called 'Norcini', in the wake of the development and population increase of medieval Rome under the rule of enlightened Popes — Martin V, Eugene IV, Nicholas V and Pius II — began to migrate, seasonally or permanently, to the capital city of the Papal States from their small town sitting between the provinces of Umbria and Marche, at the foot of the Sibillini Mountain Range. They were both manual workers and proficient Precian surgeons (whom we described in our previous monographic paper “The Precian Surgical School: an astounding European-wide success originated from a small Apennine hamlet”, belonging to this same series). But, mainly, they were butchers and experts in the processing of salted pork meat, a skill they had been developing throughout the years of the Romans and Lombards, in their native land: a territory which provided extended woods, oak trees and acorns, a most suitable environment for pig raising, together with a perfect ventilation from the nearby mountains for use in the critical, know-how-intensive seasoning process. Their outstanding ability in pig's slaughtering and the palatable salted products processed by them — including sausages, hams, salami, and many other — soon captivated the taste of the citizens of Rome, both popular and aristocratic, in such a way that the 'Norcini' were able to enter a strictly regulated local market, controlled by the Guilds of Butchers ('Macellari) and Grocers ('Pizzicaroli') as to pork meat and the related food products. This was the very beginning of a long career for the 'Norcini' in the town of the Popes: from handymen to surgeons, from butchers to grocers, they turned into a known category of people for the citizens of Rome, being portrayed in sixteenth-centuries humorous plays at Roman theaters with their funny, rustic accent and their clever wits. But there were also most affluent physicians and archiaters of the Popes, like Francesco Fusconi, and prominent lawyers at the Roman Curia, like Laerzio Cherubini. So in the seventeenth century the 'Norcini' could establish their own 'national' brotherhood, which was dedicated to their patron saints Benedict and Scholastica, and even their own trading guild. Norcia and the capital of the Papal States. The 'Norcini' and the most illustrious town of Italy. A story which began many centuries ago, and still lives in downtown Rome in our contemporary times, with the many 'norcinerie' — the gorgeous shops run by historical families from Norcia — that still offer to the Romans, in the present age, the most toothsome food: the products of the art of curing pork meat, a savoury source of happiness and joy.