Tue, 9 February 2010
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The figurine doesn’t say it, but the caganer is really a much loved and respected figurine on the typical Catalan nativity scene.BARCELONA – Winning the US presidency has also made Barack Obama the star of a centuries-old Christmas tradition in the Catalonia region of northeastern Spain - but it's a dubious honour he might prefer not to have.
The US president-elect is the top seller among this year's "caganers", ceramic figurines which show affectionate disrespect for famous personalities from home and abroad.
They have been sold in Catalonia around Christmas since the 18th century, when they were placed in nativity scenes in the hope of bringing good luck and a rich harvest.
But the statuettes show the personalities with their trousers down in the act of defecating.
"The caganer is a very loved and respected figure on the typical Catalan nativity scene," caganer maker Ana Maria Pla says on her website.
"It is not a joke, but quite the opposite, it is a tribute to the person, trade, or activity it represents."
Pla and her family make the hand-painted caganers at their factory near Barcelona, which this year has produced around 30,000 of the figurines which sell for between EUR 12 and 14 each.
"This year, the best seller is Obama. Not so much because he's new but because most of our customers are on the Internet and are in North America," Pla's daughter-in-law Barbara told AFP.
"We also get a lot of orders from Latin America."
This year’s best seller is Obama
Obama this year beat France's first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, Argentine President Cristina Kirchner and Bolivian President Evo Morales.
HOW FITTING..I´M SURPRISED THEY DON´T HAVE ONE OF HILLARY´S FAT ASS..OR ONE OF HER ¨CIGAR SMOKING¨, SAUDI LOVING HUBBIE , THE SLICKSTER HIMSELF....YES, AGAIN, CHANGE WE NEED..WHAT A JOKE!
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