Flower Carpet of Corpus Christi

A Carpet of Flowers for Corpus Christi

The Flower Carpet of Corpus Christi is one of the most evocative religious traditions of the hamlet of Moie, in the Municipality of Maiolati Spontini, in the province of Ancona. On the occasion of the solemnity of Corpus Christi, the village squares are covered with large floral compositions that draw sacred images and symbols of the Christian faith on the paving stones. It is an ephemeral and collective art: the designs are created in the hours preceding the procession and are then walked upon by the Eucharistic procession, in a gesture of homage and devotion.

The Works and the Places

The heart of the event is Piazza Don Minzoni, in front of the modern Church of Christ the Redeemer, where the infioratori create the main design. In Piazza Santa Maria, next to the ancient Abbey of Santa Maria delle Moie, a second decoration takes shape. To bring the carpets to life, natural materials carefully collected are used: roses of every colour, hydrangeas (especially white), carnations, dried magnolia, linden, and coffee grounds, the latter used to obtain shades of brown and black.

A Community at Work

The Flower Carpet is created by the Infioratori Group of the parishes of Maiolati Spontini, which every year calls on the village volunteers for the selection of petals, preparation of materials, and laying of the designs. It is an event that intertwines devotion, folk art, and a sense of belonging: for a few hours, the squares of Moie become a large open-air workshop, where children, families, and the elderly work side by side.

Faith and Tradition in the Vallesina

The Corpus Christi flower carpet is a practice rooted in many villages in Central Italy and in the Marche region, but in Moie, it takes on a particularly intimate and communal character. The hamlet, crossed by the Esino river in the heart of the Vallesina, preserves in the Abbey of Santa Maria delle Moie one of the most important examples of Romanesque architecture in the region. Witnessing the procession advancing on the flower carpets, amidst the scent of petals and the sound of bells, means grasping the most authentic soul of this Marche territory.