Costa Rica’s Famous Painted Ox Carts
Costa Rican Folk Art
Over the years, few things have become more ubiquitous in the landscape of Costa Rican history and culture than the ox cart (“la carreta” en Español). Though typically nowadays they exist mostly in homes as bright, intricately painted pieces of decorative art, back in the 19th century this workhorse was how whole shipments of coffee and supplies got moved! Can you imagine? Large caravans of ox carts snaking along skinny roads crisscrossing all of Costa Rica, making deliveries one cart at a time from one end to the other. What a sight that must have been.
The original Costa Rican ox carts “carretas” were actually designed for use with human power, not ox power, but as the coffee and sugar cane trades quickly grew, it became necessary to scale up the design and to then employ much stronger oxen for the job. Work smarter, not harder as they say!
Back in the beginning, las carretas were just tools… purely functional… their jobs were only to take shipment “a” from point “b” to destination “c”, and nothing more. All brawn, no beauty. All work, no play. What a bore, that’s no way to live! And the Ticos of yore must have agreed, because in the early 20th century the carts started bearing distinct markings and colors unique to their respective regions. As imagination took hold, new ox cart designs took shape, and before long it was a status symbol to have the finest and most intricately decorated ox cart.
The whole movement began with the wheels first, painted with simple geometric shapes in basic, bold colors. It quickly became common for regional townsfolk to use similar patterns on their own ox carts so that one could easily tell where a cart was likely from, and then to further customize the pattern to their own liking, making their own ox cart wholly unique unto them. Soon it was decided that to have pretty wheels only was to miss the point of being fabulous entirely, so it became a free for all of colors and patterns already familiar amongst certain regions, in addition to totally new concepts like flowers, birds, landscapes and faces. Annual contests were even held, awarding the most creative ox carts in Costa Rica.
Another unique characteristic affecting the artistic quality of an ox cart: the cart’s “song”. That’s right, song! Each ox cart has a song that is produced when a metal ring strikes the hub nut of the wheel, as the cart trundles along on its path. The type of wood used to construct the cart plays a huge role in the song that is produced, and thus it is important to choose your building materials very carefully in order to produce the exact effect you are going for.
Though over the years Costa Rica’s ox carts have evolved into something much less functional and much more beautiful. In fact it’s so wonderful to see that it still holds a lot of pride among the Costa Rican people. The Costa Rican ox cart is a symbol of their patience, humility and perseverance. It’s a link in the chain of industrial progress before World War II, providing economic growth and forward movement before trains, tractors and trucks were a reality in Costa Rica. So really it’s easy to see why Costa Rican ox carts are so loved: la carreta is quite literally a beautifully painted, immensely strong piece of Costa Rican soul, with a song in its heart.
If you plan to travel to Costa Rica and want to view the largest Ox Cart in the world according to Guinness Book of World records, take a tour to Sarchi and see one of Costa Rica’s most magnificent Ox Carts for yourself.
