Buti was famous in the past for the manufacture of baskets, a craft developed in the late 19th century thanks to the Filippi brothers, master basket makers who conquered Europe and the United States.
The craftsmanship of the basket weavers
The art of basket weavers consisted in the production of baskets by weaving canes and sticks of chestnut whose shape of the bottom diversified depending on the use to which they were intended. Such as the corbello, a round basket used to carry fruit and potatoes made with empty spaces in the weave in order to ensure good ventilation to the products. Or the gavagna, a large basket with a rounded bottom, used to transport grapes.
The “Schiappatura”
To make the work easier, the cut logs (“pedoni”) were wet with rainwater so that the fibers could maintain elasticity. Then they were put in wood ovens to be prepared for the “schiappatura”, a process through which the pedoni were divided into thin sheets to be easily interwoven.
A sector currently weakened, with the closure of many workshops and the resistance of very few craftsmen.