Giostra della Quintana a Foligno

Every year in June, this very colorful horse carousel dating back to the seventeenth century, which involves not only the jockeys in the race but also hundreds of costumed performers, is regularly held again for the delight of citizens and tourists. The Joust was restored in 1946, after a long hiatus, and is inspired by a horse race that, in the 17th century, aimed to determine the order of priorities for an honorary knight: loyalty to the prince or the lady of the heart. For the current version, the city territory has been divided into ten districts whose names partly echo the original ones; specifically: Ammanniti District; Badia; Cassero; Contrastanga; Crocebianca, Giotti; La Mora; Morlupo; Pugili and Spada. Ten knights, one for each district, measure their skill by trying to insert with a lance a series of increasingly smaller diameter rings on the running horse. The race, held at the municipal stadium, always takes place at night and is highly spectacular, followed by a large audience cheering their favorite. The evening before, a beautiful parade with 600 costumed performers marches through the streets of the city, warming it with colors, flags, trumpet blasts, and evoking atmospheres of another time.