The Neapolitan Smorfia

Tombola numbers aren’t just digits: they are associated with dreams, symbols, images. This strange and fascinating system is called La Smorfia, and it is the secret core of the Neapolitan tombola.

FROM DREAM TO NUMBER: the origin of La Smorfia
La Smorfia is the traditional system used to interpret dreams and turn them into numbers to play in the lottery.
Dreamt of a dog? An aunt? A card game? Every dream has a number; often more than one, because meanings change depending on context.

For example, “playing” is 79. But if you’re playing cards, it’s 17. Football? 50. Lottery? 33. Horse racing? 81. Chess? 22… A true science!

At first, the Smorfia was an oral tradition, passed down in the alleys of Naples. Then it became a book, and to help those who could not read, many editions were illustrated. A creative way to include the illiterate.

AND WHAT DOES TOMBOLA HAVE TO DO WITH IT?

In the 18th century, the lottery game was banned during religious holidays: too immoral, they said. The Neapolitans didn't give up and invented a "home" version of the game, to be played with the family, at home. Thus Tombola was born.

A way to come together, laugh, (maybe) win some money, and keep the tradition alive. And of course, the numbers from La Smorfia stayed at the center of it all.

THE SMORFIA AND THE SPOKEN TOMBOLA

In Naples, when you play tombola, the Caller that draws the numbers often accompanies them with a joke, a story, a memory. And so the game becomes a little show: improvised, playful, full of laughter.

OUR ILLUSTRATED VERSION

With Tombola Illustrata, we’ve reimagined this tradition in a new form: each number is paired with an original illustration inspired by La Smorfia. Every game becomes a journey into Neapolitan culture.