Der Bètschato / De Bèciato — The Mòcheno Carnival

Der Bètschato, the carnival of the Mòcheno people

In the small municipality of Palù del Fersina (Palae en Bersntol), tucked away in the woods of the Mòcheni Valley in Trentino-Alto Adige, Shrove Tuesday is no ordinary celebration. It is Der Bètschato (in Italian De Bèciato), the traditional carnival of the Mòcheno community, one of the ancient linguistic minorities of Germanic origin that still preserves its own language and customs in this secluded valley of the Autonomous Province of Trento.

A fertility ritual spanning the centuries

Der Bètschato has its roots in ancient spring-welcoming rituals: it is not merely a masked parade, but a true symbolic sowing of fertility and abundance. The masks visit the high mountain farms (Vrotn) and descend toward the village, bringing wishes for a good harvest and prosperity to the community from house to house. It is a deeply felt tradition that strengthens Mòcheno identity and a sense of belonging every year.

The protagonist masks

• Der Bètscho and de Bètscha — the Old Man and the Old Woman, a couple of elderly farmers with blackened faces, wearing characteristic goatskin headgear adorned with small bells, white hemp shirts, and hay-stuffed humps. They embody the cycle of the seasons, folk wisdom, and irony regarding daily life.
• Der Òiartroger — the egg collector, who wears a dark festive suit and carries a box on his back where families place eggs as an offering along the route.

How the day unfolds

In the morning, the masks depart from the highest farms of Palù and begin their rounds. In the early afternoon, the characters arrive in Piazza Lenzi, the heart of the village, where the most anticipated moment takes place: the reading of the testament, which recounts the end of the carnival in a humorous and symbolic way, followed by the distribution of the auspicious cake. In the afternoon, the festival is also enlivened by allegorical floats from neighboring towns, adding color, sound, and diverse traditions. The day concludes in the evening with Der Vòschn, the great traditional bonfire that burns the carnival and ritually marks its conclusion.

A heritage to be experienced

Participating in Der Bètschato means immersing yourself in a living piece of Trentino's cultural heritage: an authentic, popular, and participatory festival where conviviality, folklore, and collective memory intertwine within the mountain landscape of the Mòcheni Valley.