The open scissors stuck in the "pero" (apple) at the foot of the Cross. People say that with the scissors they wanted to stop the "bad points" ("peros" in Spanish) found by the evil people. The aim was to avoid the sentence: "It is very beautiful, but..." (In the dialect of Granada: "Está mú bonica, pero...".
Tradition says that a Cross made in alabaster was erected in the neighbourhood of San Lázaro in 1625 being cellebrated with dancing.
At the beginning of the 20th centuries children used to build little altars with a Cross in the neighbourhoods of Albaicín and Realejo. They decorated them with Manila shwals, pieces of pottery, copper pans and a "pero" (a type of apple) with a scissor stuck in it. Around it, the children used to beg for the "chavito" (diminutive for "ochavo", an old Spanish coin).
Some concepts of the Day of the May Cross
It's very beautiful, but...
A "chavico" for the cross...
The original festivity of the Day of the May Cross had some characteristics that have been celebrated up to now, as the custom of the children begging for a "chavico" (an old coin) for the Holy Cross, the little crosses they used to made in imitation of those of the adults.
Copper craftwork
The pieces of craftwork made in copper are usually used for decorating the Crosses. The origin of the copper craftwork in Al-Andalus had its first expression since the arrival of the Almoravids.
The pieces of copper were used to be given by the neighbours in order to pray to the Cross to have them filled the rest of the year. The May Cross was the festival prior to the harvest.
...and the fabrics
The fabrics are also present among the craftwork pieces shown in the May Crosses. On one hand, most notable are the tulle-embroidered pieces as lace mantillas or curtains. On the other side we have the typical colourful fabrics from La Alpujarra, the well-known "jarapas", made with knotty fine linen strips with sharp colours.
"Salaillas" and "habas"
The raw beans with "salaillas" (a regional type of bread) are the most significant meal of this day. Don't forget to taste it alongside the excelent Wine of the province.
Pottery of Fajalauza
The pottery of Fajalauza may be the most typical type of craftwork of the city, and the most present in the Day of the May Cross. The origin of this pottery dates back from the 16th Century as a continuity to the pottery during the Muslim period.