Cocullo's snakes
By stefano colonna
8 Jan 2008
Cocullo is small Italian center to 900 meters above sea level of approximately 400 inhabitants, situated in Abruzzo near Sulmona (150 Km from Rome)
... to S. Domenico di Cocullo did not only go for the festivity of the saint and the characteristic event with the "serpari" (a men with snakes), but more express she went to us, accompanied from its, who had been bitten from snake poison or hydrophobic dog
...according to testimonies of who it had been found in these conditions, crossed the border of Cocullo, the sick one came shaken strongest epilettica convulsion, obvious sign that for work of the saint the blood had rejected the poison...
Every first thursday of May celebrates the Festivity of Saint Domenico di Sora Abate (born in Foligno and died to Sora approximately thousand years ago, patron of the odontalgie), in this day, Cocullo, comes invaded from a lot of persons.
Faithfuls in pilgrimage, simple visitors, students of anthropology, photographers, operating television, from every part of Italy and from abroad. The event particularly with the offer of snake (colubri, lattari, biwakes, etc). to protecting the Saint Domenico Abate, Crown from the "Serpari" for the procession in the roads of the country.
Until a few years ago the snakes were "sacrificed" in the yard of the Church of San Domenico, but a different religious and civic spirit that now wants to be freed in the same mountains where they were caught.
