Festa della Madonna delle Traglie

A farming ritual unchanged since the 18th century

In Gambatesa, a village in the Fortore area of the province of Campobasso (Molise), the last Sunday of July is dedicated to the Festa della Madonna delle Traglie, one of the most heartfelt and ancient celebrations in the town. The name derives from the "traglie", ancient wooden sleds without wheels, consisting of runners and a platform on which, for the occasion, sheaves of wheat are loaded.

The return of the Virgin of Victory

The protagonist is the statue of the Madonna SS. della Vittoria, which for most of the year is kept in a chapel immersed in the quiet of the fields. Every last Sunday of July, the Virgin leaves the sanctuary to be brought into the heart of the village, where she remains until the last Sunday of September: a gesture that represents the entrustment of the Gambatesa community to the protection of the Heavenly Mother, in anticipation of a good harvest, in close connection with the Assumption Day festival on August 15th.

The ritual's program

The day opens at dawn at the Madonna's Chapel, with the country procession that winds through the fields and reaches the San Martino district, where the symbolic handover of the keys takes place. The procession then continues towards the Church of San Bartolomeo Apostolo, in Largo Castello. This is followed by the blessing of the wheat and the Solemn Mass; in the afternoon, in the square, the evocative threshing of the sheaves takes place. The evening is dedicated to popular culture, with the local folk group and food and wine stalls.

Why it's worth the trip

The Festa delle Traglie is a rare example of a ritual that still unites religiosity and peasant civilization today. For those who want to discover the most authentic Molise, it is an opportunity to witness a living tradition, passed down for almost three centuries in the heart of the Fortore.