The War of the Bucket: What one medieval battle tells us about history and myth

The War of the Bucket: What one medieval battle tells us about history and myth

A depiction of the War of the Bucket with victorious Modenese troops toting the bucket taken from the rival city of Bologna. (Museum of the History of Bologna)Se non è vero, è ben trovato (even if it isn’t true, it makes a good story). This traditional Italian observation reflects a good deal of human history. One such colourful event was the 14th-century War of the Bucket between the Italian cities of Bologna and Modena. The story is that after…