Saint Joseph Patronal Feast - Procession of the Fascine and Bonfire (Zjarr i Madh)

A unique patronal feast in Puglia

In the heart of the Taranto Salento, the town of San Marzano di San Giuseppe preserves one of the most evocative religious and folk traditions in Puglia. Every year, around March 19th, the entire community gathers around its patron saint with a festival that weaves together Christian devotion, Albanian roots, and ancient fire rituals. It is the only Arbëreshë town in the province of Taranto: founded by Albanian refugees in the 16th century, it still retains the language, costumes, and customs of the Grecìa Salentina and Albania today.

The Procession of the Fascine

The most anticipated moment is the Procession of the Fascine, which takes place on the afternoon of the eve. Dozens of festively adorned horses—up to sixty—pull carts loaded with bundles of olive wood through the town streets, accompanied by thousands of faithful. The collected wood is piled up in the town square to create the great evening bonfire.

The Zjarr i Madh, the great bonfire

At nightfall, amidst folk songs and fireworks, the Zjarr i Madh (the "great fire" in the Arbëreshë language) is lit, an enormous bonfire that illuminates the night and can be seen from neighboring towns. The tradition dates back to 1866: after a winter of famine, the inhabitants gave up their small fires to offer a single great bonfire to Saint Joseph. Since then, the town added the saint's name to its own, becoming San Marzano di San Giuseppe.

The «mattre» tables

The beating heart of the festival is the mattre, tables laden with thirteen dishes of peasant cuisine—strictly meat-free, as it is Lent—in memory of the Last Supper and the Holy Family. Blessed in the square, the dishes are offered to the poor, strangers, and anyone wishing to share the meal: a gesture of hospitality and charity passed down for generations.

Faith, folklore, and spectacle

Alongside religious rites—solemn masses, processions with the saint's statue, and blessings—the festival offers photographic exhibitions of Arbëreshë costumes, reenactments of the "thirteen dishes of the Holy Family," band concerts, musical performances, and pyromusical shows. An intangible heritage that draws visitors, scholars, and curious onlookers from across the region and beyond every March.