The Rites of Holy Week in Francavilla Fontana are an unmissable occasion to discover the deeply emotional spiritual journey undertaken by the faithful, one in which religious sentiment and the evocative local architecture blend together to create a uniquely moving atmosphere. The Friday before Palm Sunday is the day the rites begin, the day that leads into the special atmosphere of Holy Week. The Arciconfraternita dell’ Orazione della Morte undertakes the first of the processions, with a Sacred Image from the Venetian school, dated 1700 and crafted on wood on a stand. On Palm Sunday, the procession of the brothers of the Congrega del Carmine, dressed in their traditional robes and with hoods over their heads, moves towards the Collegiate Church for the Sacred Precept. On their way, they intone ancient chants handed down from generation to generation, in which they ask for forgiveness for human meanness.
Wednesday sees groups of young people invading the streets of the town, knocking on the doors of the houses to show the “piattu “, a tray covered with germinated wheat and attractively decorated, asking “ti piaci lu piattu miu ? “ (do you like my dish?) and receiving gifts in return. When they have completed their trip round the houses, the trays are taken into the Church to decorate the Holy Sepulchres.
