Life in villages with agricultural traditions like Casas de Pradas is governed by the pace of the countryside; this natural clock is the origin of most current traditions and festivals. It is no coincidence, therefore, that since the construction of the church in 1883, the patron saint of our village has been San Antonio Abad (Saint Anthony the Abbot), patron saint of animals and nature. Before him, the patron was San Gregorio, whose cult was celebrated in the now-vanished chapel located at Casa lo Alto, which is now a winery.
The Saint’s Calendar sets January 17th for San Antonio Abad, and celebrations take place in parishes accross Spain with the blessing of animals. In our village, the festivities are held on the coinciding weekend with a great bonfire and communal dinner in the church square on Saturday, followed by a procession of the Saint through the streets on Sunday morning.
The Bonfire
Fire has been and continues to be present in many Mediterranean rituals and festivities since ancient times. The ambivalent nature of the flame—as a source of light and heat, but also as a devastating force of combustion that prevents any return to the original matter—makes bonfires a ritual of renewal and purification, symbolizing the beginning of a new chapter.
To celebrate, the local youth gather the remains of vineyard, almond, olive, or pine prunings from the final months of the year. They pile them up in the square, and at nightfall, the fire is lit. The village neighbors then gather around the flames to dine using the embers of the bonfire.
The Procession
With the embers still glowing in the square, Sunday morning begins with a mass in honor of San Antonio. Afterward, his image is carried in a procession through the streets of the village.
As is tradition in the Valencian Community, the procession is accompanied by a brass band, in this case the Unión Musical de Venta del Moro. At specific moments, traditional firecrackers (tracas) and rockets are launched into the air.
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San Antón is one of the main festivities of the village, joined by the San Gregorio festivities on May 25th and the summer festivals during the third week of August. Similarly, sorrounding towns and villages celebrate various traditions, some of which have been declared Intangible Assets of Local Relevance, such as Los Judas (hanging of dolls on Holy Saturday), los Mayos (traditional songs at the church doors on the night of April 30th) or the Vírgen de Loreto Bonfire (December 9th) in Venta del Moro.
We invite you to check all the celebrations linked to these traditions on the Tierra Bobal website, the main information portal for our area, as well as in Revista Local, where full programs are usually published.
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