Parabola d'oro

The farmers advance scattered, mowing the wheat. Behind them the boundless and undulating expanse of the Sicilian fiefdom. The men load the sheaves of wheat onto the mules and transport them to the threshing floors where they arrange them for threshing. It is a job carried out with primitive systems. A man in the center of the threshing floor makes the mules run around and trample the ears of corn with their hooves. To support the animals' hard work, the man sings verses in which he invokes the sun, the wind and the Divinity. Around, the other farmers tuck the ears of corn into the threshing floor.

Then it is the siesta. The farmers sit in the shade of the few trees and rest while waiting for the wind.

The cicadas chirp.

Here comes the fresh sea breeze. The women are also at work now and with the men they lift the chaff into the air. The wind carries the straw far away while the wheat falls golden on the threshing floor. In the evening the work is done, the farmers fill the sacks, load the mules and return to the village. Along their way they find a mechanical thresher. Other farmers remain on the threshing floors and remain silent while the dogs can be heard barking.