Historical Re-enactment of the Gift of the Holy Thorns

The 29th edition, August 2025

From August 11th to 13th, 2025, Ariano Irpino, in the province of Avellino, hosted the twenty-ninth edition of the Historical Re-enactment of the Gift of the Holy Thorns. The program opened on June 29th, when the solemn ceremony of the investiture of the Captain and the Castellana was held in the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, with the participation of the thirteen districts of Ariano—including Accoli, Cardito, Cattedrale, Cerreto, Martiri, Orneta, San Liberatore, San Rocco, Santa Barbara, Tressanti, Valleluogo, and Guardia, the winner of the previous year's Palio.

During the three evenings in August, the historic center returned to the 13th century with medieval camps, markets, and taverns, flag-wavers, and falconry demonstrations. The program followed the established format: the representation of the capture and burning of Ariano in 1255 with the burning of the bell tower in Piazza Plebiscito, the grand historical pageant from the Norman Castle to Piazza Duomo with the re-enactment of the gift of the two thorns from the Crown of Christ by Charles I of Anjou in 1269, and finally the Palio delle Contrade. As always, access to the event was free.