The Procession of the Mysteries held in Erice on the Friday before Easter is smaller and less renowned than the one that takes place on the same day and time in nearby Trapani.
But it is certainly equally fascinating and full of meaning, immersed as it is in the silences and play of lights of the village, truly offering a strong sense of contemplation.
There are seven groups in total and represent the moments of Christ's passion, namely Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Flagellation, the Crowning with Thorns, the Ascent to Calvary, the Crucifix and the Urn : the Addolorata closes the procession , a truly stupendous image of the Virgin wrapped in a black cloak.
The religious procession leaves the church of San Giuliano at 2.30 pm to travel, in a very intimate atmosphere and with the prayers of the faithful in the background, the cobbled streets of the town. Truly giving strong emotions to the visitors who meet in the medieval village every year to see this particular re-enactment of the Via Crucis.
The groups are accompanied by the faithful in prayer, recited in Italian, English, Spanish, German: all in a cozy atmosphere, full of religiosity and tradition. The religious procession, accompanied by a single band, is opened by participants wearing a white tunic embroidered in red, the colors used by the friars of the Purgatory congregation.
The statues are smaller than those of Trapani but fit perfectly into the Erice context. Then there is no typical annacata with the music of the Misteri di Trapani band, also due to the continuous slopes of the streets of Erice, which make transport decidedly more tiring and difficult.
The seven groups are carried on shoulders through the cobbled streets of the villages but during the stop they rest on forks which help the bearers during the journey to the paving stones.
The Erice procession leaves on New Year's Friday from the majestic church of San Giuliano, near the Balio gardens, around 2.30pm.
The return is scheduled for the evening at 8.00 pm.
In ancient times the groups left the fifteenth-century church of Sant'Orsola , near Porta Spada, and then went up the road that runs along the thousand-year-old Elymo-Punic walls.
The procession will follow the following itinerary:
church of San Giuliano, via Roma San Francesco, via V. Emanuele, piazza Madrice, via Vito Carvini, via gervasi, piazza Umberto, via V. Emanuele, via Albertina, piazza San Martino, via Fontana, via Cordici, via Guarnotta and piazza San Julian.