Photo Of The Day: Costa Rican Oxcart

Costa Rican oxcart by Ben Beiske

Costa Rica didn't get my attention up till the other day when I read an article about it being the greenest and happiest country in the world. Not only that, but it's government has plans for Costa Rica to become the first carbon-neutral country by 2021. I mean, wow! I know smaller countries are easier to manage, but this is quite an achievement.

Then I found this amazing photo of this beautifully painted oxcart. It's not like decorated horse carriages are new to me or anything, but this came in as a lovely surprise. Historically, Costa Rica has been relatively impoverished in the area of native arts and crafts, as its relatively small and heterogeneous pre-Columbian population was devastated at an early stage, without leaving behind a unique cultural legacy that could spark a creative synthesis with the modern culture.

However, back in the good old days, at the peak of the coffee boom and before the construction of the Atlantic Railroad (that was roughly at the end of the 19th century), some 10,000 carts become fashionable vehicles used to transport coffee beans and other agricultural products. The oxcarts, with their 'invented in Costa Rica' wheels (a cross between the Aztec disc and the Spanish spoked wheel), were ideally suited for crossing the country’s mountains and dirt roads, as it took the farmers up to 15 days to get their products from the central valley to Puntarenas.

In their heyday, the oxcarts had a significant impact on the local economy; creating the need for highway guards, inns, smithies, teamsters, and work crews to maintain the roads. Nowadays their impact might be smaller, but they are nevertheless part of the touristic offer the country has, and Costa Rica vacation rentals are springing around the country to accommodate the curious and the crafts lovers. After all, the oxcarts are somehow synonymous with Costa Rica.

The man who came up with the idea of painting the oxcarts was an Italian artist who immigrated to Costa Rica. He decorated the oxcarts with bright colors and geometric patterns. But soon creativity was given free rein and flowers, faces, miniature landscapes, jungle scenes and wild animals were painted on the oxcarts' wheels. Each cart was also designed to make its own "song", a sound as unique as a fingerprint. And so the oxcarts became every farmer's source of pride. 

Nowadays, however, the oxcarts seem to be less practical and more decorative. They became Costa Rica's “National Labor Symbol” portraying the countries peaceful traditions (Costa Rica abolished its army permanently in 1949). The oxcarts now serve as liquor bars, indoor tables, garden ornaments or to simply accent a corner of a home, and they are still being crafted in the small hillside village of Sarchi. I must admit, I would love to have one in my garden, even knowing that a finely made reproduction oxcart can cost up to $5,000. Anyone cares to buy me a gift?

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