Regatta of boats with latin sail
Traditional regatta
The lug sail of the batana is square. It used to be made of robust cotton fabric and then painted. The surface and the weight of the sail depended on the size of the batana. At first, the sail used to be painted for impregnation and longer durability. In time, the painting became a sign of recognition, denoting the individuality and the identity of the owner.
Each family had its sign painted on the sail by which its mambers and other people could recognize the boat from far away on the sea. So far, the sails of over 95 families of Rovinj have been identified.
Painted motifs were mostly geometric shapes, while figurative images, writing, numbers, and symbols were less frequent. The most frequently used colors were yellow, red, and green. Around 1930. there were as many as fifty-two batanas with painted sails in the post of Rovinj. Since the end of the 1960s, not a single batana in the port has had a sail.
