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The traditional oxcart, or carreta, is Costa Rica’s most famous type of craft. From the mid-nineteenth century, oxcarts were used to transport coffee beans from Costa Rica’s central valley over the mountains to Puntarenas on the Pacific coast, a journey requiring ten to fifteen days. The oxcarts used spokeless wheels, a hybrid between the disc used by the Aztec and the spoked wheel introduced by the Spanish, to cut through the mud without becoming bogged down. In many cases, oxcarts were a family's only means of transport and often served as a symbol of social status.
The tradition of painting and decorating oxcarts started in the early twentieth century. Originally, each region of Costa Rica had its own particular design, enabling the identification of the driver’s origin by the painted patterns on the wheels. By the beginning of the twentieth century, flowers, faces and even miniature landscapes appeared beside patterns of pointed stars. Annual contests were arranged to reward the most creative artists and are still held today.
Each oxcart is designed to make its own ‘song’, a unique chime produced by a metal ring striking the hubnut of the wheel as the cart bumped along. Once the oxcart had become a source of individual pride, greater care was taken in their construction, and the best-quality woods were selected to make the best sounds.
Today's colourful and richly decorated carretas bear little resemblance to the original rough-hewn, rectangular, cane-framed vehicles covered by rawhide tarps. In most regions of Costa Rica, trucks and trains replaced oxcarts as the main means of transport, but they remain strong symbols of Costa Rican former country life, and the carretas still feature prominently in parades and in religious and secular celebrations.
传统的牛车，是哥斯达黎加最著名的工艺。从19世纪中叶开始，牛车就被用来运输咖啡豆，从哥斯达黎加中央谷地，越过群山，送到太平洋海岸的潘塔热那斯，全程需要10至15天。牛车采用没有辐条的车轮，这种阿兹台克人的圆盘和西班牙辐条车轮的混合物在穿过泥浆时，车轮不会陷入泥沼。许多情况下，牛车是一个家庭的唯一运输方式，并经常被当作社会地位的象征。
绘画和装饰牛车的传统始于20世纪初。最初，哥斯达黎加的每一个地区都有自己的独特设计，驾车者的身份背景可以通过车轮上的图案得以识别。至1915年，花卉、面容甚至微缩风景开始出现在星形图案旁。每年的竞赛都会奖励最具创造力的艺术家，这种竞赛一直延续至今。
每辆牛车都被制作出独特的“歌声”，即产生于牛车颠簸前行时，金属铃叩击车轮中轴的和谐声响。据推测，这一发明是为了使农场主听到劳工劳动的声音。一旦牛车成为自尊之源，车主在制造中就投入了更大关注，他们纷纷选择最优质的木料使其发出最美的声音。
今天的牛车装饰丰富多彩，已经与原来那种粗糙、矩形的、加藤条框并蒙以生牛皮油布的车辆完全不同了。哥斯达黎加的大部分地区，卡车和火车代替牛车成为主要运输工具，但是牛车仍然是哥斯达黎加农村生活的有力象征。牛车仍然在游行、宗教和世俗庆典中起着突出作用。
The tradition of painting and decorating oxcarts started in the early twentieth century. Originally, each region of Costa Rica had its own particular design, enabling the identification of the driver’s origin by the painted patterns on the wheels. By the beginning of the twentieth century, flowers, faces and even miniature landscapes appeared beside patterns of pointed stars. Annual contests were arranged to reward the most creative artists and are still held today.
Each oxcart is designed to make its own ‘song’, a unique chime produced by a metal ring striking the hubnut of the wheel as the cart bumped along. Once the oxcart had become a source of individual pride, greater care was taken in their construction, and the best-quality woods were selected to make the best sounds.
Today's colourful and richly decorated carretas bear little resemblance to the original rough-hewn, rectangular, cane-framed vehicles covered by rawhide tarps. In most regions of Costa Rica, trucks and trains replaced oxcarts as the main means of transport, but they remain strong symbols of Costa Rican former country life, and the carretas still feature prominently in parades and in religious and secular celebrations.
传统的牛车，是哥斯达黎加最著名的工艺。从19世纪中叶开始，牛车就被用来运输咖啡豆，从哥斯达黎加中央谷地，越过群山，送到太平洋海岸的潘塔热那斯，全程需要10至15天。牛车采用没有辐条的车轮，这种阿兹台克人的圆盘和西班牙辐条车轮的混合物在穿过泥浆时，车轮不会陷入泥沼。许多情况下，牛车是一个家庭的唯一运输方式，并经常被当作社会地位的象征。
绘画和装饰牛车的传统始于20世纪初。最初，哥斯达黎加的每一个地区都有自己的独特设计，驾车者的身份背景可以通过车轮上的图案得以识别。至1915年，花卉、面容甚至微缩风景开始出现在星形图案旁。每年的竞赛都会奖励最具创造力的艺术家，这种竞赛一直延续至今。
每辆牛车都被制作出独特的“歌声”，即产生于牛车颠簸前行时，金属铃叩击车轮中轴的和谐声响。据推测，这一发明是为了使农场主听到劳工劳动的声音。一旦牛车成为自尊之源，车主在制造中就投入了更大关注，他们纷纷选择最优质的木料使其发出最美的声音。
今天的牛车装饰丰富多彩，已经与原来那种粗糙、矩形的、加藤条框并蒙以生牛皮油布的车辆完全不同了。哥斯达黎加的大部分地区，卡车和火车代替牛车成为主要运输工具，但是牛车仍然是哥斯达黎加农村生活的有力象征。牛车仍然在游行、宗教和世俗庆典中起着突出作用。