There’s no denying that Italy loves its saints, and the Sicilian city of Palermo is no exception. Since 1624, the city has been celebrating its patron saint Santa Rosalia, affectionately known as La Santuzza, with six days of lavish and solemn processions that honor her grand act of ridding Palermo of a particularly deadly plague. This year marks the 399th edition of the feast, which spans between July 10th and July 15th.
Who was Santa Rosalia?
Rosalia Sinibaldi was the daughter of a wealthy Norman nobleman who lived during the 12th century, when Sicily was at the height of its political and economic power, and one of the most powerful kingdoms in Europe. At a young age, Rosalia rejected her family status and wealth and cloistered herself in a cave, where she lived as a hermit for the remainder of her short life.
Legend has it that four centuries later in 1624, when Palermo was suffering from a deadly plague, Rosalia appeared to a huntsman, who she instructed to find her remains in the cave and carry them in a procession through the infested streets of the city. Upon doing so, the city was cured of the plague, and a sanctuary was built in the cave where Rosalia’s bones were found. Every year since 1624, the people of Palermo have been celebrating the saint and her intervention during the deadly plague with a procession.
How does Palermo celebrate?
The Sicilian city celebrates the saint with six days of processions and religious and secular events, spanning from July 10 to July 15.
U Fistinu, the feast, begins every year on the night of July 10 with a solemn procession led by the city’s archbishop and mayor. It begins at the doors of the Cathedral of Palermo and ends by the harbor with an impressive fireworks display. The procession’s crown jewel is an intricately decorated triumphal float built into the shape of the ship, with a statue of Santa Rosalia standing atop a bed of roses teetering at its top. The massive float, which is rebuilt every year and decorated with roses, angels, and tritons in bold swaths of gold and red, reaches nearly 32 feet in height and is pulled by oxen, although historical records indicate that exotic animals like elephants have pulled it in the 17th century.
During the feast, the city is awash with events and celebrations dedicated to the saint. Traditional dishes like pasta with sardines, babbaluci, snails boiled with garlic and parsley, boiled octopus, sfincione, and fresh fruit such as watermelon, make grand appearances during these days. The feast culminates on July 15th when Santa Rosalia’s relics, housed in a silver urn, are carried in a procession to the Cathedral of Palermo and blessed by the archbishop.
Asia London Palomba
Asia London Palomba is a trilingual freelance journalist from Rome, Italy. In the past, her work on culture, travel, and history has been published in The Boston Globe, Atlas Obscura, The Christian Science Monitor, and Grub Street, New York Magazine's food section. In her free time, Asia enjoys traveling home to Italy to spend time with family and friends, drinking Hugo Spritzes, and making her nonna's homemade cavatelli.