Threshing and Harvest Festival

Wheat, threshing, and rural heritage

The Threshing and Harvest Festival takes place in Zungoli, a small town in the Province of Avellino, Campania, nestled in the heart of Alta Irpinia. This event was created to showcase traditional field work: the harvest, the grain brought to the threshing floor, and the slow, communal rhythm of the threshing process. For one evening, the municipal sports field transforms into a traditional threshing floor, where vintage agricultural machinery is brought back to life before the public.

Historical re-enactment of traditional threshing

The highlight of the event is the historical re-enactment of traditional threshing: the thresher is fired up, straw is separated from the grain, and the entire community gathers around the harvest. It is a live narrative of the toil, culture, and solidarity of the Irpinian rural world, where every step is performed with historical accuracy. For those who have never seen a traditional threshing, this is the most direct way to understand what it meant to live off the land before mechanization.

Vintage farm machinery and antique tools

Before the re-enactment, the sports field hosts a gathering of vintage farm machinery: tractors and historical machines lined up, many restored by local enthusiasts and collectors. Alongside the machinery, an exhibition of antique farming tools allows the public—especially the younger generation—to get an up-close look at the scythes, pitchforks, sieves, and utensils that supported generations of Zungoli families.

• Gathering of vintage tractors and farm machinery
• Exhibition of traditional farming tools and utensils
• Historical re-enactment of traditional threshing
• Food stalls featuring traditional peasant cuisine

Food stalls

Once the re-enactment concludes, the food stalls open, offering the authentic flavors of local peasant cooking. This is the most convivial part of the evening: dining outdoors, chatting among hay bales, and enjoying the simple, family-friendly atmosphere typical of Irpinian village festivals, where the crowd is a mix of residents, returning emigrants, and passing visitors.

Zungoli, a village of stone and caves

It is worth arriving a few hours early to explore the village. Zungoli is part of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy network and has been awarded the Orange Flag by the Touring Club; in 2026, it placed third in the popular Italian TV competition 'Il Borgo dei Borghi'. The medieval historic center, dominated by an 11th-century Norman castle, hides a network of Byzantine-era tufa caves. Once used as dwellings, they are now repurposed for aging local products—most notably Caciocavallo Podolico cheese and local hams, which owe their distinct flavor to the natural humidity and constant temperature of these environments.

A young event in the Zungoli summer calendar

The August 2025 event was presented by local media as the '1st Threshing and Harvest Festival', although the provincial portal 'Sistema Irpinia' had already noted a similar event in Zungoli in August 2024. It is a recent celebration that complements the village's other summer initiatives, from the 'Sagra della Chiccozza' to cheese tastings on the night of San Lorenzo. As of the writing of this guide, there are no official announcements regarding the 2026 edition; those wishing to attend should check the Pro Loco and municipal channels around mid-August.