Festa dels Tres Tombs Barcelona

Tres Tombs Sant Antoni Barcelona

Festa dels Tres Tombs Barcelona

Every January close to St Anthony's day in the Sant Antoni area of the Eixample district of Barcelona you can experience the parade of Tres Tombs -  also called the “Cavalcada dels Tres Tombs de Sant Antoni” or called “la Festa dels Tres Tombs."  The Sant Antoni Tres Tombs festival in Barcelona is late January every year.

The "Tres Tombs" parade is a highlight of the annual "Festa Mayor de Sant Antoni" neighbourhood festival of the Sant Antoni area of Barcelona. The word "tombs" is Catalan, and does not mean the same as the word "tombs" in English at all, so don't expect a vampire parade of funeral carriages.  “Tres” means three, and “tombs” means "tours" or "walks" in Catalan, "Tres Tombs" means "three tours." The name derives from the tradition of the "Tres Tombs" parade taking the same route around a village or area three times. This is tradition that dates back to pre-Christianity times and cultures.  Romans would walk round their temples for good fortune and in the Muslim religion pilgrims circle the Kaaba in Mekka seven times.

The Tres Tombs parade in Barcelona does not take the same route three times anymore just the once. It's a very festive parade and worth seeing for the more than thirty-five horse drawn vintage carriages, which pay tribute to the animal-drawn vehicles of bygone days including horse-drawn fire-engines, hearses and other carriages.


Benedicció dels Tres Tombs i animals

Parade and animal blessing. As the "Cavalcada dels Tres Tombs" passes the church callled  “la Escola Pia de Sant Antoni”  the parade animals are blessed and anointed with holy water by a priest standing on a platform by the roadside.. After the parade has passed hundreds of people crowd in around the priest to have their dogs, birds and other small pets blessed and annointed. If you want to have your hamster blessed, then the blessing of small pets is front of the church, “la Escola Pia de Sant Antoni” on
Ronda de San Pau, 72 and is at 11.30 on the day of the Tres Tombs parade.  This wonderful animal blessing tradition derives from St. Anthony the Abbot (Sant Antoni Abat) who is the Patron Saint of animals, the poor, and the sick. 

St. Anthony the Abbot was a hermit who lived in Alexandria, Egypt in the fourth century, but who renounced his worldly goods and retired to the desert of northern Egypt. In the 1100s, the Order of Knights Hospitallers, an organization that cared for the sick across Europe, adopted him as its patron saint and ever since St Anthony has been saint to send prayers to prevent and cure disease in people and animals. The Tres Tombs festival is celebrated in villages and towns throughout Catalunya and the village of Valls is one of the best places for the Tres Tombs festival.


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Other Sant Antoni Festa Mayor highlights

The Sant Antoni Festa Mayor has a full programme of fun activities for all the family including theater, concerts, dances, exhibitions and more.  A popular event in the Sant Antoni Festa Mayor is the Cursa Sant Antoni 10k run. The festival ends on Sunday 26th January with a traditional fire-run called a Correfoc infernal organised by the "Devils of Sant Antoni" called  "La Colla de Diables de Sant Antoni. The correfoc starts at 20:00 in the evning from junction of streets Calabria & Gran Via


Date Sant Antoni Tres Tombs festival
Pictures Tres Tombs Barcelona
About St. Anthony the Abbot

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Last Updated on Saturday, 07 March 2015 20:17