“La Zolfara” is a striking painting by Sicilian artist Renato Guttuso. Created in 1953, it captures the inside of a sulfur mine and the men and children who worked in it. In yesterday’s post, I referred to sulfur as brimstone because I wanted to conjure images of “fire and brimstone,” the idea of which very…
Tag: mine
Sicily and Brimstone
This may look like chickpea flour, but it’s not. It’s brimstone–otherwise known as sulfur, a natural resource which is found in mines throughout south central Sicily. In the 19th century, sulfur was in high demand because it was used to manufacture gunpowder and matches and to treat diseases–both human and plant. According to Sandra Benjamin…