Madonna della Croce Festival

The 2025 edition in Pietranico

In 2025, the Municipality of Pietranico, in the province of Pescara, once again celebrated the Madonna della Croce Festival on the traditional dates of May 2nd and 3rd. The evening novena prepared the community with the lighting of small fires in honor of the Virgin.

On the evening of May 2nd, at dusk, the procession departed from the Church of San Michele Arcangelo and Santa Giusta: the statue of the Madonna, accompanied by the band, crossed the village amidst large piles of broom set ablaze as the cortege passed, and torches carried in double rows by the devotees. On the morning of May 3rd, the statue was carried in procession to the Oratory-Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Croce, a jewel of Abruzzo Baroque overlooking the valley towards the Maiella, confirming the vitality of a tradition unbroken since 1675.