In Sardinia there are
three important festivals where one can admire all the traditional
costumes from the four provinces of Sardinia. They are the "Sagra di Sant'Efisio" (Festival of
Saint Efisio), which occurs in Cagliari on the 1st of May, the "Cavalcata Sarda" in Sassari on
the 3rd Sunday of May and the "Sagra del Redentore" in Nuoro on the last Sunday of
August.
The most important festival is the
"Sagra di Sant'Efisio" because it is dedicated to Saint Efisio who is the Patron Saint of
Sardinia, because it is the most ancient and because it is the most impressive procession of
traditional costumes in the whole world.
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This procession represent a
marvellous spectacle of colour, materials, handicrafts, ancient
jewellery and styles of clothing. Every year thousands of men,
women and children travel from all over Sardinia to Cagliari, dressed in their traditional
costumes, to honour the Saint who was beheaded in the 303 AD and who is venerated by the
Sardinian people because he liberated them from a terrible plague in 1657.
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Many of them ride
horses, others are in decorated carts hauled by oxen. The procession in which at least
5,000 people take part fills the streets of Cagliari with extraordinary costumes that not only
reveal the different costumes of the ancient Sardinian people, but also the detailed features
that adorn the costumes, such as various types of intricate lace work, decorations and
embroidery, which are all hand-made, using skills that have been handed down from mother to
daughter throughout the centuries.
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