Summer Celebrations in Honor of the Madonna del Bosco and San Costanzo (Patronal Feast)

The Festa delle Spighe

On August 15, 2025, the village in the Daunian Mountains renewed the Festa delle Spighe, one of the most beloved traditions of the Panni community. The day began early in the morning with a representation of ancient peasant arts and crafts and a demonstration of wheat harvesting; numerous carts, decorated with wheat sheaves in the most imaginative ways, were paraded through the village streets, accompanied by a procession in period costumes with donkeys laden with wheat and a final horseback ride.

The patronal processions

The devotional heart took place at the end of August: the August 26th procession in honor of San Costanzo the Martyr and the August 27th procession of the Madonna del Bosco, with the statue of the Virgin — her throne adorned with votive gold — carried through the historic center amidst the participation of the faithful. On August 28th, the statue was escorted back to the sanctuary, officially closing the Panni summer season.

Folk festivals and secular events

Alongside the religious rites, there was no shortage of secular events that animate the village: sports tournaments, evenings of music and cabaret, food festivals featuring local specialties, and moments of celebration in the squares of the historic center overlooking the Cervaro Valley.

August 15, 2025 — Festa delle Spighe

• Morning — representation of peasant arts and crafts and demonstration of traditional wheat harvesting;
• Procession of wheat-decorated carts through the village streets, with a parade in period costumes and wheat-laden donkeys;
• Concluding horseback ride.

August 26, 2025

• Solemn procession in honor of San Costanzo the Martyr.

August 27, 2025

• Procession of the Madonna del Bosco through the village streets, with an evening show.

August 28, 2025

• Return of the Madonna's statue to the sanctuary in the woods: closing of the summer festivities.