Offida Carnival Celebrates 500 Years with Ancient Rituals

The Carnival of Offida, a town of 4,500 in the Marche region of Italy, marks its 500th anniversary in 2024. First mentioned in municipal statutes in 1524, the celebration runs from January 17 (feast of Saint Anthony Abbot) to the first day of Lent, culminating on February 13. Key events include 'lu bov fint' (a wooden and iron bull carried and 'provoked' by the crowd) and 'i vlurd' (bundles of canes stuffed with straw, lit and waved by participants wearing white peasant-inspired 'guazzarò' garments and red caps). The festivities also feature masked balls at the Teatro Serpente Aureo. The 'Storiche Congreghe'—goliardic associations of friends and family—organize parades and competitions, notably the 'Congrega del Ciorpento' which parades from Palazzo Mercolini Tinelli on 'Domenica degli Amici' (two weeks before Carnival). On Giovedì Grasso (February 8), one Congrega receives the city keys from the mayor, symbolically taking control of the town.