Madonna delle Grazie and San Bartolomeo Feast – Quagliategli Festival

The August festivals of Civitella Roveto

In the town of Civitella Roveto, a village in the Valle Roveto on the edge of the Marsica region, in the province of L'Aquila and the heart of Abruzzo, the days following Ferragosto are dedicated to the most anticipated celebrations of the year. These are the Feast of San Bartolomeo, the town's patron saint, and the Feast of the Madonna delle Grazie, traditionally held on the weekend following August 15th. It is an event that unites the entire community and draws back many locals who return to their hometown for the occasion.

Faith and processions

The religious dimension remains the cornerstone of the event. The festivities are preceded by a triduum of prayer and culminate in two processions: that of the patron saint San Bartolomeo, which winds through the town center on the first day, and the solemn procession of the Madonna delle Grazie, a venerated image to which the inhabitants are deeply devoted. Holy Masses mark the day dedicated to the Virgin, which begins at dawn with a evocative musical wake-up call that travels through the village.

The quagliategli festival and the Ballo della Mammoccia

Alongside the religious celebration, there is the popular one. In Piazza Gran Sasso, the famous quagliategli e fascioli festival takes place, featuring a traditional peasant dish from the Roveto valley made of homemade pasta and beans with pork rinds. The evenings are enlivened by concerts, cover bands, and musical guests, concluding with the ancient Ballo della Mammoccia: a folkloric ritual linked to the figure of the Pantàsema, a female effigy from central Italian agrarian culture symbolizing fertility, which traditionally closes every civil or religious festival in the town.

Bands, flag-wavers, and fireworks

The festival involves the Civitella Roveto Music Band, which parades through the town, and guest groups such as flag-wavers, as well as entertainment for children in the squares. The grand finale is provided by spectacular fireworks and artistic lighting that illuminate the sky of the Valle Roveto, closing two days of community, tradition, and joy.

A defining local event

Organized by the Madonna delle Grazie Festival Committee, with the support of the Municipality of Civitella Roveto, these feasts represent one of the strongest identity-defining moments of the local calendar. Between the sacred and the profane, between devotion and gastronomy, they preserve the traditions of a small Abruzzese town that lives its connection to its roots with great intensity.