Our Lady of the Rosary Festival in Piansano

A devotion spanning over three centuries

The Our Lady of the Rosary Festival is the most iconic event of the Municipality of Piansano, a small village in the Province of Viterbo, in the heart of the Tuscia region, in Lazio. The statue of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary was commissioned by the parish priest Nicolò Fanti in 1711 and was solemnly crowned on October 4, 1863; a few years later, in 1867, Pope Pius IX elevated the celebration to the rank of a first-class solemnity with an octave. Since then, the Piansano community has renewed an unbroken bond every autumn, passed down from generation to generation.

The Ascension of the Madonna, the most awaited ritual

The most evocative moment is the Ascension, which takes place on the Friday preceding the first Sunday of October. The sacred image descends from its niche thanks to an ancient mechanism of beams and winches, is welcomed by the faithful, and then slowly rises back toward the altar while the church intones popular, spontaneous, and emotional Marian hymns. It is a ritual that has nothing "spectacular" in the modern sense of the word: its strength lies in the choral participation of an entire town, which for one evening gathers around its Madonna.

The procession on the first Sunday of October

On Sunday, at the end of the solemn concelebrated mass, the processional float — a sumptuous wooden canopy crafted in 1856, embellished with lacquer and colorful inlays — is carefully maneuvered out of the church portal and lifted onto the shoulders of the bearers. The procession winds through the village streets and includes:

• confraternities in uniform with their banners;
• the marching band accompanying the entire route;
• the zelanti, women carrying heavy votive candles, sometimes barefoot, to fulfill a vow;
• the faithful in prayer along the festively decorated streets.

After the procession, the Madonna remains exposed on the processional throne for an entire week: days of visits, prayer, and devotion, which conclude the following Sunday with the repositioning, a more intimate but equally well-attended ceremony.

The secular festival: "Piansano in Festa"

Alongside the religious dimension, the town enjoys days of secular celebration now gathered under the name Piansano in Festa. The program, curated by the parish together with the Municipality and local associations, unfolds in the weeks leading up to and during the main days with the evening novena in the parish church, briscola and bocce tournaments organized at the Senior Center, entertainment evenings in Piazza Lucia Burlini, food stalls, and live music. There is also a fireworks display that closes the most important evenings.

What to eat

The cuisine of the Viterbo Tuscia is the star of the stalls set up for the occasion: homemade pasta with meat sauces, roasts and grilled meats, porchetta, homemade desserts, and wines from the Colli Etruschi. It is the ideal opportunity to taste the typical products of the Upper Tuscia in an authentic setting, far from mass tourism circuits.

Why it's worth the trip

Piansano has just over two thousand inhabitants and is not a well-trodden tourist destination: precisely for this reason, its festival retains a genuine character that is hard to find elsewhere. Those who arrive during the days of Our Lady of the Rosary find a town where every family is involved, from the band rehearsals to the preparation of the candles, from the decoration of the streets to the organization of the kitchen. Nearby, the Tuscia region offers Lake Bolsena, the villages of Tuscania and Montefiascone, and the Etruscan necropolises: an itinerary that combines popular faith, landscape, and archaeology.