Bivona is one of Sicily’s symbolic locations for the devotion to Saint Rosalia, possibly the oldest, if not the very first. She was named patroness of Bivona following the 1624 plague, though her statue had already been present for twenty years and is still used in the procession taking place on September 4th.

A small church dedicated to Saint Rosalia existed as early as the 14th century. In response to the 1624 plague, the people of Bivona, convinced that her protection had spared them, proclaimed her their Patron Saint and rebuilt the church on a larger scale. The beautiful statue and the ornate vara (processional float) of Saint Rosalia were sculpted by the local priest Ruggero Valenti.

On the feast day, the traditional scinnuta of the float from the main altar is met with a wave of white handkerchiefs on the churchyard.

Another distinctive feature is the scenic procession, where the statue departs from the Saint’s Church and makes a long journey through the town’s streets, decorated with festive lights marking the route. The celebration also includes a town fair with numerous stalls offering goods ranging from local products to artisanal crafts that embody Sicilian culture.

Saint Rosalia’s cult is a powerful symbol of identity for the entire Bivona area. Despite its simplicity, the Feast in her honour is one of Agrigento’s most anticipated and significant religious events. Bivona’s importance in this devotion is hoghlighted by its inclusion in the “Itinerarium Rosaliae,” a natural-cultural-religious route created in 2014 by the Sicilian Region. It connects places associated with Saint Rosalia, from the Hermitage in Santo Stefano Quisquina to the Sanctuary on Mount Pellegrino in Palermo, crossing towns bearing testimony to her passage or presence.

 

This element has been included in the Register of Intangible Heritage of local interest of the Municipality of Bivona, as part of Intervention 6 “Activation of the Observatory on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Territory through the application of the REIL methodology – Register of Intangible Heritage of Local Interest”, within the “ Metasicani effetto farfalla” project, funded by the NRRP (National Recovery and Resilience Plan), Mission: Digitalisation, innovation, competitiveness, culture and tourism, Component: Tourism and culture 4.0, Investment 2.1 “Attractiveness of villages.” CUP: J79I22000180006.