Mendrisio's Holy Week Processions UNESCO World Heritage Site

The Holy Week processions, attested since the second half of the 17th century, take place within the Borgo of Mendrisio on Thursday and Friday evenings. For this occasion, street lighting is suppressed and the dim light of transparencies, translucent canvas paintings, spreads through the quarters.

The Maundy Thursday procession
During the Maundy Thursday procession, called fünziun di Giüdée in the local dialect, about 270 characters walk through the streets of the village bringing to life the drama of Jesus Christ, staging the Passion. The presence of some forty horses, lackeys with torches, trumpeters and drummers contributes to the evocative atmosphere.

The Good Friday procession
The Good Friday procession, known as Entierro (from the Spanish "entierro," burial) is austere and solemn and is most imbued with spirituality. More than seven hundred costumed people take part, divided into members of two confraternities and religious associations.

The public can freely choose where to watch the processions pass by, but we point out that it is possible to reserve a seat on the grandstands in the Piazza del Ponte.

On 12.12.2019, UNESCO inscribed Mendrisio's Holy Week processions on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

HOURS:

• Thursday: 8:45 p.m.

• Friday: 8:45 p.m.