With celebrations in honor of St. Justin onMay 11, As every year in the city of Chieti kicks off the events of the May Teatino . An opportunity to set out to discover one of Abruzzo’s most fascinating cities.
Capital of the warlike Italic people of the Marrucini, situated on a hill between the sea and the Maiella, Chieti is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Italy. According to the founding myth, it was dedicated by the hero Achilles to his mother, the Nereid Teti. It was in fact municipium in Roman times under the name Teate Marrucinorum, later the capital of the province of Abruzzo Citeriore, and today is one of the four provincial capitals in Abruzzo.
Discovering a capital city of Abruzzo rich in memories
Of its remote past, the vestiges of the Roman Forum still speak to us, with temples from the Julio-Claudian era built on a sanctuary from the Italic era, the theater and amphitheater overlooking one of Abruzzo’s most scenic belvederes, the baths embellished with black-figure mosaics and the labyrinthine system of conduits and cisterns located beneath the present-day historic center. Today it is a treasure trove of memories and culture in Abruzzo, with the Marrucino Theater, one of the most famous in Italy, the National Archaeological Museum of Abruzzo in Villa Frigerj, the most important collection of artifacts from the Italic peoples of Abruzzo, the University Museum an exhibition space dedicated to Natural Sciences and the History of Science; the Costantino Barbella Picture Gallery, a collection of local paintings, sculptures and applied arts; and the Civitella Museum, an educational space that holds artifacts from the ancient acropolis of Teate.
St. Justin was the leader of the city’s interminable series of bishops in the sixth century. A hermit called from his refuge on the Maiella to assume the office of bishop. This is how the marble antependium in the Cathedral, carved by Giuseppe Sanmartino, the celebrated author of the Veiled Christ in the Sansevero Chapel in Naples, shows him to us. The arm of St. Justin, kept in the crypt, enjoys particular veneration among the faithful, thanks in part to stories of him being the protagonist of several miracles. Among others, that of 593, when the “holy arm” was carried in procession to repel a dangerous invasion of locusts.
May Teatino’s events for 2025
The month of May is full of initiatives this year in Chieti, with the involvement of city associations and a unique calendar containing two of them, that of Maggio Teatino and the May of Books, now in its sixth edition, with the Reading Marathon entitled “100 authors, 100 titles – 24 uninterrupted hours of readings on the theme of Power” at the Marrucino Theater. A program of more than 150 events, including plays, book presentations, performances, film forums, lectures, concerts, meetings, participated in by neighborhood, comprehensive, school, cultural and third sector committees. It begins with celebrations for the patron saint on Saturday 10 and Sunday 11, two days of festivities that will culminate on Sunday with the now traditional Palio de lu Ricchiappe . But the events on the bill do not end at this weekend and will span the entire month, discover them with us by downloading the program poster.
