Processione dei Crocioni

The Processione dei Crocioni (Procession of the Crosses) in Castiglione Garfagnana, scheduled for April 17, starting at 8 p.m., is a special portrayal that retraces the ascent of Jesus to Calvary. The rite has very ancient origins, now almost undefined, to the point that the precise date of its creation has been lost. 

The key feature of this rite is the profound meaning attached to the vow or penitence of the man playing the part of Christ. According to tradition, Christ is dressed in a white cape and his face is hidden by a white hood crowned with thorns. What makes this portrayal unique is that no one (except the Prior of the fraternity) knows the identity of the man playing the part of Christ.

After the re-enactment of the Last Supper, the man playing Christ arrives at the Church of San Michele, at the end of Mass. His arrival is announced by the sound of chains placed around his ankles over his bare feet, at which point he enters the church and receives a kiss from Judas and is burdened with the heavy weight of a wooden cross. It is at that point that the procession begins. Christ, with his heavy cross, begins the walk of penance barefoot through the paved village streets, escorted by Roman guards. 

Anticipating his arrival are the men of the confraternity, with flashlights and a drum roll announcing the three falls at the villages's most picturesque spots: the churchyard of San Pietro, Torricella and Porta del Ponte Levatoio (gate of the drawbridge).