Italy's colourful and interesting Carabinieri calendars are becoming collector's items and the 2013 edition will be the 85th.
I became interested in them when I wrote an article about Italian calendars for Italy Magazine in 2009 and the following year, a Carabiniere student of mine gave me one. A couple of weeks ago we found a forgotten 2004 edition in the new school building and a few days later, while I was waiting for a friend in the bank, I happened to remark to the manager that I liked the two he had on display in the foyer. Imagine my surprise when he took them down and presented them to me with a flourish! The only "gift" I had ever previously received from a bank manager having been a stroppy letter, I doubly appreciated the gesture.
The Carabineri corps will celebrate its 200th anniversary in 2014 and because of this the 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 calendars each document and illustrate 50 years of its history.
