A bullfight in Seville

Our First Trip to Spain April 6-18, 2005

A Bullfight in Seville

April 15, 2005

We had seen the plaza de toros in Seville on our first day there, but only from the outside. It took us a week, but we finally decided that going to a bullfight was an experience we wanted to share with Cristián. We walked over to the bullring and bought our tickets in the morning for the bullfight late that afternoon.

The bullring, La Real Maestranza of Seville, is one of the most beautiful, oldest and most significant in the history of bullfighting. It took more than a century to build, with contributions by various achitects until its completion in 1881. Sitting in our seats, we could tell that the people of Spain must have been much shorter when it was designed. Munchkins would have been more comfortable!

Seats are either sol or sombra, that is, in the sun or shadow. Girls handed out advertising fans to people as they entered. Full sun in Seville can be brutal, so we had paid more to have seats in the shade. Afterwards, when the sun was gone, we needed the jackets we had with us.

The program began with a parade of the participants. There were 3 teams, each consisting of the matador, 3 assistants with capes, 2 men with colorful wooden barbs and two pickadors on horseback.

In the preliminary phase, the assistants work with the bull with their magenta and gold capes. This gives the matador a chance to appraise the agility, intelligence, dangers, sight and strength of the bull.

Next, the picadors ride in on their padded and blindfolded horses. They provoke the bull to get it to attack one of them. His purpose is to plunge his lance into the bull's neck in order to weaken its powerful neck muscles, causing it to lower its head so the matador can do his graceful cape work.

The bulls would sometimes lift the horses half off the ground, but the padding protects them.

The banderilleros run close to the bull and stab its neck muscles with two decorated barbed wooden sticks. In addition to further weakening the bull through blood loss and enraging the bull, these can also be used to correct the bull's charge.

The third and final part is the capework, when the matador demonstrates his control and bravery by manipulating the actions of the bull. The three matadors we saw each had their own style. With a sword in one hand, the matador uses his red cape to attract the bull in a series of passes, demonstrating his control over it. There are 40 different passes he can do. The crowd shouts Olé after each good pass.

When the the bull is weak and unable to charge much longer the matador will reach for his killing sword and try to get the bull close to him in the right position for a death stroke through the back of its neck and into the heart. Quick, clean kills are rewarded with a great deal of applause and earned a lap of honor around the arena for the matador followed by the 3 assistants. People in the audience would shower him with flowers, hats, cushions, shawls and gifts. The assistants would toss back most of what was thrown. The crowd demonstrates its approval of a fight by waving white handkerchiefs which are a signal to the president to award the matador a trophy, such as an ear or tail. We saw this done after 2 or 3 of the 6 bullfights.

Not all bullfights are without incident. One matador was hurled to the ground by the bull. The assistants from all the teams raced in to distract the bull and help him. He got up again and finished the fight very successfully.

One time, the bull was exceptionally strong and brave. Many people in the crowd started to whistle. Cristián asked the people around us what was going on. They said that if enough people whistled, the president would allow the bull to be spared in recognition of an exceptional performance. Such bulls would be generally retired from competition, as their experience in the ring makes them extremely dangerous opponents, but would live out their lives as stud bulls. We were sad when the matador was allowed to kill that bull.

After each kill, the team of mules would drag the dead bull from the arena. Others would quickly sweep the sand to removed tracks and cover the blood in the ground to prepare it for the next bullfight. There were 6 fights, with each matador facing 2 bulls.

The next day, we read about the bullfight in several newspapers. During the season, there is a lot of media coverage of bullfighting. Statistics of each bullfighter and how many ears he has been awarded in how many bullfights are readily available. Matadors are celebrities in Spain.

The bullfight has a long history in Spain, probably with its roots in antiquity, when bulls were sacrificed to the gods. It is full of traditions, art and drama. It seems strange and even cruel to many of us who are unfamiliar to it. We were glad that we had experienced it once, but one time was enough.

Next page: Evidence of the Romans

		The bullring, La Real Maestranza of Seville, is one of the most beautiful, oldest and most significant in the history of bullfighting. It took more than a century to build, with contributions by various achitects until its completion in 1881. Sitting in our seats, we could tell that the people of Spain must have been much shorter when it was designed. Munchkins would have been more comfortable!
Seats are either sol or sombra, that is, in the sun or shadow. Girls handed out advertising fans to people as they entered. Full sun in Seville can be brutal, so we had paid more to have seats in the shade. Afterwards, when the sun was gone, we needed the jackets we had with us.

The program began with a parade of the participants. There were 3 teams, each consisting of the matador, 3 assistants with capes, 2 men with colorful wooden barbs and two pickadors on horseback.

The banderilleros run close to the bull and stab its neck muscles with two decorated barbed wooden sticks. In addition to further weakening the bull through blood loss and enraging the bull, these can also be used to correct the bull's charge.

The third and final part is the capework, when the matador demonstrates his control and bravery by manipulating the actions of the bull. The three matadors we saw each had their own style. With a sword in one hand, the matador uses his red cape to attract the bull in a series of passes, demonstrating his control over it. There are 40 different passes he can do. The crowd shouts Olé after each good pass.


When the the bull is weak and unable to charge much longer the matador will reach for his killing sword and try to get the bull close to him in the right position for a death stroke through the back of its neck and into the heart. Quick, clean kills are rewarded with a great deal of applause and earned a lap of honor around the arena for the matador followed by the 3 assistants. People in the audience would shower him with flowers, hats, cushions, shawls and gifts. The assistants would toss back most of what was thrown. The crowd demonstrates its approval of a fight by waving white handkerchiefs which are a signal to the president to award the matador a trophy, such as an ear or tail. We saw this done after 2 or 3 of the 6 bullfights.

		Not all bullfights are without incident. One matador was hurled to the ground by the bull. The assistants from all the teams raced in to distract the bull and help him. He got up again and finished the fight very successfully.
One time, the bull was exceptionally strong and brave. Many people in the crowd started to whistle. Cristián asked the people around us what was going on. They said that if enough people whistled, the president would allow the bull to be spared in recognition of an exceptional performance. Such bulls would be generally retired from competition, as their experience in the ring makes them extremely dangerous opponents, but would live out their lives as stud bulls. We were sad when the matador was allowed to kill that bull.

After each kill, the team of mules would drag the dead bull from the arena. Others would quickly sweep the sand to removed tracks and cover the blood in the ground to prepare it for the next bullfight. There were 6 fights, with each matador facing 2 bulls.
The next day, we read about the bullfight in several newspapers. During the season, there is a lot of media coverage of bullfighting. Statistics of each bullfighter and how many ears he has been awarded in how many bullfights are readily available. Matadors are celebrities in Spain. The bullfight has a long history in Spain, probably with its roots in antiquity, when bulls were sacrificed to the gods. It is full of traditions, art and drama. It seems strange and even cruel to many of us who are unfamiliar to it. We were glad that we had experienced it once, but one time was enough.