Dark donkey in grayscale

Since ancient times, the donkey has been the best friend of the Sicilian. Used as a means of transport and as a working animal in the fields, the donkey is an icon of Sicilian culture. In the Sicilian language it is called "Sceccu", but why? According to a legend, to explain the origin of this name, we must go back to the time when the Arabs conquered Sicily. Relations between the two peoples were initially not among the best. The Arab king Miramolino wanted at all costs to assert his power as ruler and established rules that forbade the Sicilians to carry arms and go horseback riding. "Neither we nor they!" thought the Sicilians. To retaliate, they poisoned all the drinking troughs and killed all the horses on the Island. At this point the Arabs decided to send horses from Africa to Sicily but, due to a storm, the ship that carried them sank and only donkeys were saved and the Arabs were forced to use them, while in the meantime the Sicilians derided them. From that moment on the donkeys were called "Scecchi", deriving this name from the term "sheiks".