Bullfighting

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Bullfighting is a sports spectacle involving a bull and one or more contestants. It is fought in an outdoor arena and is done according to certain rules and procedures. Traditionally the bullfight is a combination of ritual and mortal combat. The purpose is to maneuver the bull gracefully and kill it in a manner both courageous and extrordinary. Although bullfighting is mainly confined to Spain and spanish speaking countries in the western hemisphere, these contests also take place in southern France and Portugal.
The History of Bullfighting
Bullfighting has been around since ancient times. Paintings of bullfighting have been found and traced back to 2000 B.C. Bullfights were popular in ancient Rome, but the form of bullfighting that we see today was developed on the Iberian Peninsula by the Moor people. These people were from North Africa and they changed the sport from a formless spectacle into the graceful, flourishing sport it is today. In 1726 Fransisco Romero introduced the estoque(sword) and the muletta(a small more easily wielded worsted cape used in the last part of the fight). Since these two things were introduced the sport has stayed much the same.


The Bullfighters Dress
A matador is usually distinguished for his assistants by his satin traje de luces( suit of lights). This suit is usually deorated in gold. The assistants wear suits decorated in silver. The most popular colors are red, black, green, blue and white. Yellow is never worn by the Matador or his spectators as this is a sign of bad luck. The suit is worn with a white shirt, a narrow black tie, a red, green or a black sash knotted at the waist, black ballet type slippers and a astrakhan which is a type of two cornered hat. To top off the outfit the Matador wears a pig tail clipped to the back of his head. When a matador retires this tail is cut in the open ring. Shown below is an example of a Matadors costume.



The Parts of ...