On this day, residents of Cocullo, a village in the Abruzzo hills in central Italy, honour their patron saint, Domenico Abate (951 - 1031), who was known for miraculously healing snakebites. After a church service, citizens carry an effigy of St. Domenico, draped with defanged snakes, through the streets. It is said to be a good omen if the reptiles wind themselves around the statue’s head and neck. In the past, the snakes were killed and cooked after the parade, but nowadays they are returned to the countryside. Locals instead eat cimbelli — bread shaped like an ouroboros (a symbol depicting a snake eating its tail).
