ITALIA TOUR

THE FEAST IN HONOUR OF THE PATRON SAINT BELPASSO CATANIA SICILY

The feast in honour of the patron saint, on the 12th and 13th of December, is one of the most important events for the local population, who not only wait for the suggestive procession of the relics and the simulacrum on the silver carriage, the work of Sicilian goldsmiths of the 18th century (on the 13), but also and above all the opening of the carriages and the “cantate” (songs) the evening of the day before.

The carriages are big mechanical constructions, which contain elaborate scenes, made after weeks of intense work by several artisans who represent each district of the village.
The artisans are led by a “mastro” who is the designer of the carriage, deciding its theme.
The carriages are presented closed, one by one, in Piazza Duomo, and they are slowly opened (“la Spaccata”), disclosing the scene in an exultation of lights, paintings and living characters in a spectacular crescendo waiting for the last carriage, the “Apotheosis of Saint Lucy”, while ancient songs accompany the event.
The first event of the year is Carnival.
Its origins are connected to the theatrical local shows, i.e. the “mascarata”, a typical expression of spontaneous and popular recitation.
Today, Carnival is dressed in more intense colours with parades of masquerade groups, lights and special effects, inside specially prepared tents.

Subsequently there is the Easter celebration. The popular religiousness of the locals enjoys, in this period, highly suggestive moments: music and songs - among which we remember the “Stabat” by the local Michelangelo Virgillito - echo among the historical streets, while characteristic Sepulchres are prepared in the churches, and the statues and the Cloths of the Crucifixion are exhibited. Among the exposed works of art, the wooden dying Crucifix of the 16th century, preserved in the MotherChurch, has a particular artistic relief.

fonte comune di Belpasso