The Cult of Vespa

The Cult of Vespa

THE CW LIBRARY

LITTLE KNOWN FACT: VESPA CREATOR CORRADINO D’Ascanio disdained motorcycles, and envisioned the motor scooter not as an inexpensive alternative, but as a further refinement, with a superior seating position, better weather protection and an easy-to-change spare tire. This and other trivia is revealed in The Cult of Vespa, a compendium of 13 essays on the world’s most popular motor scooter. Produced by Vespa’s public relations department, the book recounts the entire history not just of the Vespa, but of parent company Piaggio, as well. So we learn that the firm was founded in 1881 as a maker

of ship parts before progressing into the railway and aviation sectors. Then, as did Ducati with its Cucciolo, Piaggio recognized the need for low-cost transportation following World War II and the Vespa was born.

Or rather, the Paperino (Italian for “Donald Duck”) was born. It wasn’t until company president Enrico Piaggio was shown the prototype and said, “Funny, it looks like a wasp,” that the name Vespa was chosen.

On one hand, the book takes the charm out of the Vespa’s popularity, revealing how an eager in-house publicity machine and factory-sanctioned worldwide club network created a sort of false fashion. But on the other, the Vespa is painted as everything from a mythological heroine to a sex symbol, so there’s no shortage of romance.

Originally written in Italian and translated into the Queen’s English, the book is checkered with curious turns of phrase and creative punctuation. But the numerous photographs and illustrations-many of which depict latin lovelies draped over a scooter’s saddle-are worth the cover price alone. It’s required reading for Vespa enthusiasts. Brian Catterson