Great anticipation in Cocullo on May 1, 2024, for The Rite of the Serpari in honor of St. Dominic the Abbot.
Fascination and religion come together in this rite of very ancient origins that combines faith and curiosity: during the celebrations of the feast of St. Dominic the Abbot, the Abruzzi town witnesses a unique and fascinating spectacle that attracts thousands of believers and tourists every year. The most striking moment is represented by the procession, when the statue of the saint is placed in the center of the square and covered with live snakes to be then carried on the shoulders through the streets of the town. The reptiles are placed on the statue of the saint, but not in front of his face because according to a saying, passed down for generations, if they were to cover him it would be a bad omen.
The festival is an event where pagan rituals merge with Christian tradition: devotion to St. Dominic the Abbot, protector from reptile bites, is intertwined with the archaic ritual of the “serpari,” snake handlers and curators; these still preserve the ancient techniques for capturing animals, participating in the age-old ritual in a new guise that focuses on respect for nature. In fact, each snake has an identification mark on its head so that it can be retrieved from its serpar, at the end of the procession, and released back into the wild in the fields.
For this major event, which is renewed every year on the same date, the festivities will begin on April 30 with Mass, commemoration of the Fallen and the DancEvolution Live Tour concert. They will culminate on Wednesday, May 1, with a solemn Mass celebrated by the Bishop of Sulmona-Valva, H.E. Michele Fusco, which will start the Serpari procession. A historical procession through the alleys of the town will distribute ciambellati, characteristic doughnuts decorated with colored sugar sprinkles. The festivities will conclude with a band concert by the award-winning Lazio Region Band, conducted by Maestro Carlo Morelli.
Thousands of people are expected in this small village nestled in the mountains of Abruzzo, which is filled with tourists and the faithful every year on this occasion.
Precisely because of the large influx, traffic jams are possible at the A25 highway exit of Cocullo starting in the early morning hours. People are advised to consult the traffic report before setting out and to keep up to date en route to possibly consider exiting at the Pratola Peligna-Sulmona A25 highway exit and from there follow the signs to Cocullo.
