A BEAUTY CONTEST

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 161, 6 January 1912, Page 10 (Supplement)

A BEAUTY CONTEST

THE HANDSOMEST WOMAN IN EUROPE. , For the third time in its history Rome has elected a "Queen of Beauty," who i was chosen by popular vote from among all the girlhood and young womanhood < of the Eternal City. It had been pub- ' lis-hed in certain foreign papers that the 1 classical types of Roman feminine beauty d —those models which inspired Raphael n for his "Fornarina" and his "Beatrice c Cenci," had disappeared from Rome, and 1 that the town of the Caesars could no J longer claim to be the classical paradise 1 of womanly loveliness. The clamor that r this publication caused among artists c and art lovers in Italy and abroad was 0 such that some of the artistic institu- t tions of Rome, with the support of all v the newspapers in the Italian capital, k immediately decided to hold a beauty t competition exclusively for girls under t 20 born in Rome of Roman parents. The t difficulty of an election of this kind ii nearly overwhelmed the organising com- ii mittee, owing to the large number of w girls who entered for it as soon 'as the t news spread into the various parts of p the town. The committee were there- t fore obliged to resort to a double system li of election. Each of the 18 precincts into ti which Rome is divided was to choose a its own "princess," and the people of n Rome were to elect the "queen" out of n the 18 princesses by a general referen- It dum in which every citizen was entitled a to give one vote. Each "rione" or pre- n cinct appointed a selection committee .ft formed of artists, editors and well- h known persons from every quarter. Only 11 men were allowed to sit on such commit- ci tees; but, of course, the women of Rome a: as well as the men were allowed to vote r< in the ultimate decision for the "Queen d< of Beauty." p: In certain "rione" the competition be- s>] tween the girls became so keen that it in threatened to end in a serious disturb- A ance, as every candidate was supported pi by a large group of admirers who were d< prepared to shed their blood for her if a need be. The "rioni" of Trastevere and ei the "rioni" of Monti, which are chiefly bi inhabited by the poorer classes, have been the scenes of real struggles, and for a time there was danger that these two quarters of Rome would clash in one of those sectional quarrels which occurred frequently during the Middle Ages, and still continue in certain Spanish towns ** as a relic of ancient rivalry. Finally the competition, which was witnessed by S ! several hundred thousand people, termin- el ated in the victory of Palmira Ceccani. C: .Signorina Ceccani, whose features have ™ made more than one artist compare her " with the celebrated "Fornarina," Ra- &■ phael's famous heroine, is a girl of 18, di and is actually employed as a State cigarette maker in Rome. She is not only Roman by birth, but all her ancestors on both sides have been descendants of a Roman family, and have been living '}" for over two centuries in one of those m remarkable dwelling-houses of Traste- °* vere (the part of the town across the Tiber), where the most beautiful models ® of the Italian "rinascinmento" used to, a ' live, and where Raphael discovered his ™ "Fornarina." The* beauty of Signorina *" Ceccani had been appreciated long ago a by artists who used to spend a great i° part of their time at Trastevere in order * c to study their models in their original re surroundings. It is a peculiar side of w the artistic life of Rome which mixes n< up artists and models in one family, with the result that it frequently terminates {" in elopements and other love affairs. *fi Although Roman men of th 6 lower w classes are very jealous of their women & and rarely admit foreigners into their circles, ■ the story is told in connection ai with Signorina Ceccani that an English & sculptor who had seen her was at once m struck by her classical features that he tc wrote several times asking her to sit for tJ him, and promising her large sums of cc money. The young girl always refused it to accept his offer, but the Englishman, it finding all his peaceable efforts were use- w less, determined to have his beautfuj 7( model at any cost. For several nights tl he watched outside the factory where it Signorina Ceccani worked, to make sure in of the time of her departure, and one in night he waited with a cab. As soon as the girl appeared he approached her, pro- m mising to marry her and make her rich ci if she would consent to elope with him. bi These tempting offers still met with re- ol fusal on the part of Signorina Ceccani, t 1 who ultimately confessed that she was a already engaged to a young man of her si district, for whom she would have de- w spised any money and any promises, ci "What a pity!" the Englishman told g her; "you should marry a king, for you t! are the queen of Roman beauty." Signor- a ina Ceccani little thought at that mo- 0 ment that the gallant "forestiere" was c; actually foretelling the event which has e recently been so strikingly fulfilled. d When the news of the beauty competi- n tion reached the ears of Signorina Cec- d Jcani she was doubtful whether she c should enter for it or not, either because r she did not yet believe in her beauty or t because she was rather afraid of what r. her "inamorata" would say; but the pres- l sure brought to bear by her relatives and by friends in Trastevere persuaded her to become a candidate without the knowledge of her fiance, who was astonished when he saw a photograph of his sweetheart published in the Roman papers first as a princess and then as the ! "Queen of Roman Beauty." < Signorina Pastianelli was also a favor- ' ite in the contest. She belongs to the ' Monti district, and her supporters threat- ] ened to break out in revolt if the title 1 of "queen" were not awarded to their ', princess; but they were forced to admit ' that no other princess could compare with the classical perfection of Signorina Ceccani, and they ultimately agreed that Trastevere was still holding the palm. Signorina Pattiferri, another candidate, according to the opinion expressed by several well-known artists, bears the mark of that distinction •which has made the .women of the Caesars famous. , She is the representative of that type of , calm, vigorous beauty which prevailed [ at the time of the Roman Empire. [ The "Queen of Roman Beauty" was I awarded £125 by the committee, but the s amount of presents which have been sent j to her by private persons far exceeds the 3 Yftlue of the prize. The Roman nobility, j as well as the poorer classes, have all 3 paid their tribute to the "Queen of r Beauty," and no reigning queen could have been greeted in a more enthusiastic a way by an entire city. The presents jj which have been sent to her run from k the complete contents of a flat to a few , yards of silk, and include a considerable amount of jewels and valuables. A poor countryman sent a enormous homemade cake, while an old woman from the j. provinces walked to Rome to bring a .(; dozen of fresh eggs to the "queen." t j Signorina Ceccani has received, no fewer B . than 1000 offers of marriage from suitors , n of all classes, many of whom are J n wealthy; but she has refused every pro,g posal, and will shortly marry her "inr. amorato." All the other princesses , r have received a sum of money, and will ,„ receive a further sum if they marry withjn two years. Each of them has ir also had many offers of marriage from u . all parts of the world. These princesses ; k are each provided with two ladies-in-h' waiting, who have also been elected by { \l popular referendum, and include some rets maTkably fine Roman beauties.