Il Palio Parade: Siena, Italy
Twice a year, the endearing town of Siena holds a traditional festival that harkens back to the Middle Ages honoring the Virgin Mary. The festival consists of a lavish pageant called the Corteo Storica, complete with historic garb, grand feasts, revelry in the streets, and, like any good festival, copious amounts of drinking. However, the main event of Il Palio is a bareback horse race around the town's center, Piazza del Campo.
A fierce rivalry has formed between the 10 contrades (districts) within Siena as each district attempts to win the prized trophy:
a painted banner with a picture of the blessed Mary called a Palio. Famous artists are commissioned to create new Palios for each race.
Il Palio
Siena, Italy
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