Caracolo of Caulonia

Among the Easter rites in Calabria, the Caracolo of Caulonia, a town on the Ionian coast in the province of Reggio Calabria, is one of the most original and links two ancient Mediterranean cultures.

The Caracolo of Caulonia is the religious rite par excellence celebrated in the historic centre of Caulonia on Holy Saturday. The name of the festival is a whole programme: the local term ‘’Caracolo‘’ derives in fact from the Spanish word ‘’caracol‘’, which means ‘’snail‘’ and refers to the slow and tortuous progress of the procession through the village's narrow streets. The procession was named after Spanish families originally from Murcia and transplanted in Caulonia (the ancient Castelvetere) at the end of the 17th century, who brought their Easter customs here.

This is why the Caracolo of Caulonia represents much more than a religious procession: it is a meeting of cultures that binds past and present through the procession of eight statues (varette) representing the different stages of the Passion of Christ (Christ in the Garden, Christ at the Pillar, Ecce homo, Christ carrying the Cross, Crucified, Dead, Our Lady of Sorrows and St John). In its slow pace, the Caracolo is accompanied by prayers and sacred chants until evening.