The text below is a translation of information found in several Italian books. An idea I have had for a long time in order to make it easier for others to learn and appreciate the wonderful Italian techniques and craftsmanship. The information is far from complete and deals with general subjects as terminology, types of shells and the general set-up of a typical Italian (nighttime) display. The names and terminology presented are in common use throughout Italy, but depending on the region of Italy other names and terminology may be used.
Technical terminology:
Polvera Nera: the well-known mixture of potassiumnitrate, charcoal and sulfur. In English it’s called “Black Powder”.
Stoppino (or Miccia veloce): a string of cotton that is primed with black powder.
Passafuoco: a folded paper “tube” that contains “stoppino”. It passes fire very rapidly from one point to another. In English it’s called “Quickfuse”.
Miccia di sicurezza (a lenta combustione): a trace of black powder that is entwined in textile fibres. It has an outer diameter of about 6 mm. and has a constant burnrate (120 seconds per meter). In English it’s called “Safety fuse” or “Time fuse”. It is used to fuse the smaller shells and inserts.
Spoletta: a small cardboard cylinder loaded with strongly pressed black powder. It’s goal is to give a perfectly timed delay between two parts of a multibreak shell or between two individual shells in their mortars. They give rhythm to fireworks. It is used to fuse the bigger (cylindrical) shells and the individual parts of a multi-break shell.
Figure 1: Several types of spoletta
Spoletta di madre (or Spoletta di tiro): the “mother fuse” or “main fuse” of a shell. It is ignited by the “passafuoco” (quickfuse) and gives fire to the (first) breakcharge of a shell.
Spoletta intermedia (or Spoletta di ripasso): a “spoletta” that gives fire from one breakcharge to another and/or gives fire to the small inserts inside a shell.
Stella: compositions of chemicals that our bound together, mostly spherical or pressed cylindrical pellets. These produce the colours in the sky. In English it’s called “Star”.
Giulebbatura: putting a fine layer of black powder on a star in order for it to ignite easier. In English it’s called “Priming”.
Cannoli: pressed cylindrical pellets (bigger than “stella”), sides protected with a few layers of paper, ends are primed with black powder, burns from both ends to the middle. Made with colourfull compositions and placed in a shell for the evening or "controbomba". After the break they fall down to earth in a circle of fire-like falling stars.
Figure 2: Several types of stars
A = round stars
B = cylindrical stars
C = cannoli
Botti: in English it’s called “salute”. In professional jargon there are many kinds of “botti”. E.g.: colpo scuro (dark salute), controcolpo (bottomshot), bizzarro, calcassa, risposta, colpo, tronetto, colpetto (small salute), colpicino, frappum. They vary in size and are all cylindrical.
The “colpetti” (small salutes) are used for the effect “riprese” and in the shells for the beginning of the finale of a display (“sbracatelle”).
The “colpi”, “bizzarri”, “calcasse” or “risposte” are (somewhat) bigger and are used in the “bombe a scala” as “intrecci” or “controcolpo”.
The “colpo scuro” (dark salute) is a large shell, filled with a nitrate based composition.
The “colpicini” (small salutes) are used in the finale of a display. They are made of a cardboard cylinder, just like the “spoletta”. One end is filled with pressed black powder, which serves as the time delay, then some flash composition is added. The tube is topped of with some sawdust and closed with a plastic plug.
Figure 3: Part of a multi-break shell and some inserts
A = shell/break for a multi-break shell
B = granatina or sfera
C = colpo di scala
D = colpetto micciato
E = colpicino
Serpentelli: these are small cardboard tubes of about 1 cm. in diameter and 8 cm. in length. In fact, they are small fountains and are made using the same technique. The tubes are filled with plain black powder. Three types of “serpentelli” can be distinguished: “semplici”, “a piroetta” and “a girello”. The first has one open end and one end that is plugged with clay (followed by a small salute (con botta) or some stars (con stelle)). The second has one opening to the side and two ends that are plugged with clay (followed by a small salute (con botta) or some stars (con stelle)). The latter also has two closed ands, but has two opposite openings to the side, that take fire simultaneously by using some “stoppino”, which makes them spin rapidly.
Granatine/Sfere: these are tiny inserts for a shell. One shell mostly contains 18 “granatine”, which are placed in three layers of 6 in a circle. Fused with a “spoletta” or “miccia di sicurezza”. It is sort of like a bombette.
Pupatelle: inserts for a shell. They contain stars of high quality and brilliant colour.
Intreccio: several inserts that explode almost simultaneously in the sky. In English it would translate to “interwoven” or “mosaic”.
Ripresa: several “botti” that explode almost simultaneously in the sky. It’s the daylight equivalent of “intreccio”.
Spacco (or in jargon “peperone”): in English it’s called “breakcharge”. A paper form, filled with flashpowder, that runs from the end of the “spoletta” to the centre of the shell, sometimes running over the entire length axis of a cylindrical shell. The amount and type of composition have to be determined very securely in order to give the maximum effect.
Mina di lancio: this is the liftcharge of the shell, which propels it into the sky.
Tira: the actual shooting of the shell
Mortaio: mortar out of which the shell is shot.
Pacca: break of the shell after which it shows its effect.
Sfondi: breaks of a shell. A two-break shell has two “sfondi” and gives a “pacca” two times.
Controcolpo: bottomshot of a daylight shell.
Controbomba: colourful (last) shell in a nighttime multi-break shell.
Spagatura: strengthening of the shell with string. In English it’s called “spiking”.
Tracchiare: connecting the shells together by using “spolette” and “passafuoci”.
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Literature:
Fuochi Pirotecnici – L’arte e i segreti, Francesco Nicassio, Levante Editori, Bari, 1999
Pirotecnia Moderna, F. di Maio, Hoepli, Milano, 1891
Fuochi Artificiali, T. de Francesco, G. Lavagnolo, Torino, 1960
Technical terminology:
Polvera Nera: the well-known mixture of potassiumnitrate, charcoal and sulfur. In English it’s called “Black Powder”.
Stoppino (or Miccia veloce): a string of cotton that is primed with black powder.
Passafuoco: a folded paper “tube” that contains “stoppino”. It passes fire very rapidly from one point to another. In English it’s called “Quickfuse”.
Miccia di sicurezza (a lenta combustione): a trace of black powder that is entwined in textile fibres. It has an outer diameter of about 6 mm. and has a constant burnrate (120 seconds per meter). In English it’s called “Safety fuse” or “Time fuse”. It is used to fuse the smaller shells and inserts.
Spoletta: a small cardboard cylinder loaded with strongly pressed black powder. It’s goal is to give a perfectly timed delay between two parts of a multibreak shell or between two individual shells in their mortars. They give rhythm to fireworks. It is used to fuse the bigger (cylindrical) shells and the individual parts of a multi-break shell.
Figure 1: Several types of spoletta
Spoletta di madre (or Spoletta di tiro): the “mother fuse” or “main fuse” of a shell. It is ignited by the “passafuoco” (quickfuse) and gives fire to the (first) breakcharge of a shell.
Spoletta intermedia (or Spoletta di ripasso): a “spoletta” that gives fire from one breakcharge to another and/or gives fire to the small inserts inside a shell.
Stella: compositions of chemicals that our bound together, mostly spherical or pressed cylindrical pellets. These produce the colours in the sky. In English it’s called “Star”.
Giulebbatura: putting a fine layer of black powder on a star in order for it to ignite easier. In English it’s called “Priming”.
Cannoli: pressed cylindrical pellets (bigger than “stella”), sides protected with a few layers of paper, ends are primed with black powder, burns from both ends to the middle. Made with colourfull compositions and placed in a shell for the evening or "controbomba". After the break they fall down to earth in a circle of fire-like falling stars.
Figure 2: Several types of stars
A = round stars
B = cylindrical stars
C = cannoli
Botti: in English it’s called “salute”. In professional jargon there are many kinds of “botti”. E.g.: colpo scuro (dark salute), controcolpo (bottomshot), bizzarro, calcassa, risposta, colpo, tronetto, colpetto (small salute), colpicino, frappum. They vary in size and are all cylindrical.
The “colpetti” (small salutes) are used for the effect “riprese” and in the shells for the beginning of the finale of a display (“sbracatelle”).
The “colpi”, “bizzarri”, “calcasse” or “risposte” are (somewhat) bigger and are used in the “bombe a scala” as “intrecci” or “controcolpo”.
The “colpo scuro” (dark salute) is a large shell, filled with a nitrate based composition.
The “colpicini” (small salutes) are used in the finale of a display. They are made of a cardboard cylinder, just like the “spoletta”. One end is filled with pressed black powder, which serves as the time delay, then some flash composition is added. The tube is topped of with some sawdust and closed with a plastic plug.
Figure 3: Part of a multi-break shell and some inserts
A = shell/break for a multi-break shell
B = granatina or sfera
C = colpo di scala
D = colpetto micciato
E = colpicino
Serpentelli: these are small cardboard tubes of about 1 cm. in diameter and 8 cm. in length. In fact, they are small fountains and are made using the same technique. The tubes are filled with plain black powder. Three types of “serpentelli” can be distinguished: “semplici”, “a piroetta” and “a girello”. The first has one open end and one end that is plugged with clay (followed by a small salute (con botta) or some stars (con stelle)). The second has one opening to the side and two ends that are plugged with clay (followed by a small salute (con botta) or some stars (con stelle)). The latter also has two closed ands, but has two opposite openings to the side, that take fire simultaneously by using some “stoppino”, which makes them spin rapidly.
Granatine/Sfere: these are tiny inserts for a shell. One shell mostly contains 18 “granatine”, which are placed in three layers of 6 in a circle. Fused with a “spoletta” or “miccia di sicurezza”. It is sort of like a bombette.
Pupatelle: inserts for a shell. They contain stars of high quality and brilliant colour.
Intreccio: several inserts that explode almost simultaneously in the sky. In English it would translate to “interwoven” or “mosaic”.
Ripresa: several “botti” that explode almost simultaneously in the sky. It’s the daylight equivalent of “intreccio”.
Spacco (or in jargon “peperone”): in English it’s called “breakcharge”. A paper form, filled with flashpowder, that runs from the end of the “spoletta” to the centre of the shell, sometimes running over the entire length axis of a cylindrical shell. The amount and type of composition have to be determined very securely in order to give the maximum effect.
Mina di lancio: this is the liftcharge of the shell, which propels it into the sky.
Tira: the actual shooting of the shell
Mortaio: mortar out of which the shell is shot.
Pacca: break of the shell after which it shows its effect.
Sfondi: breaks of a shell. A two-break shell has two “sfondi” and gives a “pacca” two times.
Controcolpo: bottomshot of a daylight shell.
Controbomba: colourful (last) shell in a nighttime multi-break shell.
Spagatura: strengthening of the shell with string. In English it’s called “spiking”.
Tracchiare: connecting the shells together by using “spolette” and “passafuoci”.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Literature:
Fuochi Pirotecnici – L’arte e i segreti, Francesco Nicassio, Levante Editori, Bari, 1999
Pirotecnia Moderna, F. di Maio, Hoepli, Milano, 1891
Fuochi Artificiali, T. de Francesco, G. Lavagnolo, Torino, 1960
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