Francesco Paolo Michetti “Le Serpi”, 1900

There aren’t many things that don’t change, but timeless Cocullo’s snake festival is thankfully is one of those. Here we look back at the artists and photographers who recorded it in the 20th century, that Pete Austin first put together in our FB group, and which we have extended to include a few more. A fantastic in-depth visual resource to see how the festa has looked over time is the FB group, Cocullo, Festa Di San Domenico Abate, 1° Maggio.   For the history of the spectacle that dates back to an Italic goddess and which now draws media agencies like The Guardian and BBC read our post, Getting Slippy at the Cocullo Snake Festival.

Click on an image to view it in a larger format.

William Harrison Woodward – Cocullo, the separi waiting for the saint. 1908.

William Harrison Woodward – Cocullo, procession of San Domenico. 1908.

“Through the Apennines and the Lands of the Abruzzi”, by Estella Canziani.

Cocullo, 1951, I serpari, David (Chim) Seymour

Cocullo, 1951, I serpari, David (Chim) Seymour

Cocullo, 1951, I serpari, David (Chim) Seymour

From ‘A Traveller in Southern Italy’ by H. V. Morton. Probably a 1960s photo

Cocullo, Umberto Pizzi, 1976

Cocullo, Umberto Pizzi, 1976

Cocullo, Umberto Pizzi, 1976

Cocullo, Umberto Pizzi, 1976

Author: Sam Dunham

Sam is a very lucky midlife 'mamma' to A who is 11 and juggles her work as a self-employed freelance travel and food web content manager and copywriter and EFL teacher - she is the founder of English in the Woods. She is the co-founder of the social enterprises: The Abruzzo Blogger Community and Let's Blog Abruzzo. She is currently writing the book 'Abruzzo: Folk and Food.