Valencia Trader

Corpus Christi in Valencia

CORPUS CHRISTI VALENCIA
This is a festival that dates back to 1355 and is centred on a solemn procession in which Sacramento was accompanied by the authorities and clergymen of the city. They followed an itinerary laid down by the noblemen of the city, most of which is still adhered to today.

The Cabalgata (a mounted parade) or Convite is a more recent development and symbolises an invitation from the Capella de les Roques (the les Roques chapel) to the authorities and people of the city to take part in the Corpus Christi procession.

The Corpus Christi procession itself is a kind of a living Bible, involving many of the characters from both the Old and the New Testaments.

Los Gigantes (the giants) and the Cabezudos (Spanish carnival figures with enormous heads) dance along behind the procession.

During the Corpus festival, there are performances of Entremeses or Misteris (the Mysteries of Christ); Eucharistic plays, based on 15th and 16th century writings, performed in the Valencian Language.

Las Rocas (huge, decorated carriages and floats) allow the Misteris to be performed at different points on the route. The carriages can be seen at the Casa de las Rocas (close to the Torres Serranos).

The Corpus Christi procession starts in the mid-afternoon with a colourful parade headed by the municipal police in gala uniform. To the sound of dulzaina pipes and drums the procession winds its way into the Plaza de la Virgen. In its ranks and files it includes giants and fatheads, and ‘rocas’, or triumphal carriages representing Biblical mysteries. One is called the Moma, all dressed in white to symbolize virtue in a struggle with the capital sins. There are also candleholders or cirialots, who carry huge candles representing the 24 ancients who revered the ‘Lamb’, among many other characters, dance troupes and others who flock to the environs of the Cathedral.