Feast of Saint Costanzo

Saint Costanzo, the first patron saint of Perugia

Every January 29th, Perugia celebrates Saint Costanzo, bishop and martyr, the first of the city's three patron saints (along with Saint Herculanus and Saint Lawrence). The festival is jointly organized by the Municipality of Perugia and the Diocese of Perugia-Città della Pieve and represents the first major moment of collective identity of the year for the community of Perugia.

The Torcolo, the sweet symbol of the festival

The protagonist of the day is the Torcolo di San Costanzo, a typical donut-shaped cake which, according to tradition, recalls the wreath of flowers removed from the Saint's head after his beheading. Enriched with raisins, candied fruit, pine nuts, and anise seeds, the Torcolo is cut and publicly tasted along Corso Vannucci and in Borgo XX Giugno, in collaboration with trade associations and the Italian Sommelier Association.

Between the sacred and the profane

The festival combines the religious dimension—with holy masses and the solemn Eucharistic celebration in the Cathedral presided over by the Archbishop—with the civil and popular one, featuring the grand Fair of Saint Costanzo that enlivens Borgo XX Giugno throughout the day. A historical procession symbolically offers five gifts to the Saint: the laurel wreath, the candle, the incense, the vin santo, and the unmissable torcolo. A day that tells the most authentic soul of Perugia, the capital of Umbria.