A journey into the culture and folklore of a Provencal town that each year celebrates the victory of a saint over a mythological monster.
The Tarasca Festival: history, trivia, and tips for making the most of this unique event.
The Tarasca Festival is a folk tradition held annually in Tarascona, in the south of France, in the month of June. The event celebrates the legend of St. Martha, who, according to Christian tradition, arrived in Provence in the 1st century AD and managed to prayerfully tame a terrible beast that terrorized the region: the tarasca, a kind of giant tortoise with a lion’s head and spiny tail.
The event is divided into several moments. On Saturday morning there is the procession of the white penitents, who carry the relics of St. Martha on their shoulders from the church to the castle. In the afternoon there is the riding of the tarasca, a allegorical float depicting the monster, which is pulled through town by six men dressed as horses. In the evening there is a fireworks display on the Rhone, the river where the tarasca is said to have been hiding. The next day, a solemn mass in honor of St. Martha is celebrated in the morning and the sea is blessed. In the afternoon, the tarasca ride is repeated and concludes with a folk dance in the square.
The Tarasca Festival is an opportunity to evoke the history and culture of Tarascona, a town that has been able to preserve its artistic and architectural heritage, such as the medieval castle, the collegiate church and the museum dedicated to the writer Alphonse Daudet, author of the famous novel Tartarin of Tarascona. The event also provides a fun time for citizens and visitors, who can attend performances, taste typical products and participate in activities.
The Tarasca Festival is a unique event that testifies to the vitality and originality of a city that has been able to turn a legend into a cultural and tourist asset.
To find out the dates of the event, click here.