From Wednesday 20 to Sunday 24
Historical town centre in San Giovanni in Marignano

The celebration replaces the ancient rites once held to mark the summer solstice. For centuries it has therefore given rise to various events linked to popular beliefs and customs.

These include “Saint John’s Bonfires” as well as other propitiatory rituals that were typical of festivities to mark the start of the summer.

A collective custom on this occasion was to collect herbs that, according to popular belief, multiply their therapeutic and magical qualities if picked on the night before the feast of Saint John the Baptist, or in other words the night between 23rd and 24th June.