MINIATURES

One Paris newspaper accounts of the Luna case -- L'Affare Luna In the last week of September 1892, the Paris press was all abuzz, reporting on the sensational case of Juan Luna, a well-known figure in the Hispanic artistic community of Paris, who in a fit of jealous rage and marital dispute, shot and killed his wife and mother-in-law. The case was given different labels as newspapers came up with their own rhetoric of sensationalism, such as "la tragédie de la rue Pergolèse" and "L'affaire Luna," among others. Regional and provincial papers picked up the story, and in the succeeding weeks, it spread throughout France. Spanish papers, owing to Juan Luna's stature, also began their series of reports about the case. Later, one more enterprising Spanish journal would publish Antonio Luna's letter to a friend, sharing his brother's side of the story. The Luna case was arguably one of the most sensational events reported about a Filipino in the 19th ce...

Photo of a Manila bullfight in Paco --This is a preliminary part of the corrida, notice the toreros holding something like a barbeque stick? Those are "banderilleros". They test the ferocious nature of the animal, sticking the sharpened banderillas at the back of the bull. Wenceslao Retana, a former adversary who later became the biographer of José Rizal, offers a comprehensive account of bullfighting in the Philippines during the late 18th to 19th centuries in his book "Fiesta de Toros en Filipinas." One of the intriguing questions that arises from this historical narrative is: where did the bulls come from? In Spain, the tradition of "Ganadería de Brava" involves breeding bulls with outstanding bloodlines to ensure the animals' ferocity. A fighting bull, or "toro de Lidia," typically comes from a selected breed. To maintain its ferocious nature, breeders follow strict traditions, such as allowing the bull to roam freely in a free-rang...