Origins, places and fun facts about the fires of Sant’Antonio

A thousands-years-old ritual between sacred and profane, Sant’Antoni’e su fogu, that every year, in the night between January 16 and 17, lights up the Island with hundreds of bonfires, celebrating Sant’Antonio Abate, protector of animals and countryside, with chants, dances and shared meals.

Every year, during the night between January 16 and 17, hundreds of Sardinian communities gather around the flames of wide bonfires to celebrate Sant’Antonio Abate, the “Christian Prometheus” who, similarly to the Titan of Greek mythology, descended to the Underworld, together with his faithful piglet companion, to steal fire from Lucifer and, by capturing it with his ferula stick (a herbaceous plant that, in contact with fire, it blackens but does not burn), give it to men, enabling them to live a safer and more comfortable existence.

It’s a ritual of uncertain origins, which over the centuries has spread almost throughout the entire territory of the ancient Island of Ichnusa, bringing its symbolism closely related to religious rites and Christian spirituality, but also a varied legacy deriving from ancient pagan cults and beliefs, such as millenary practices of purification and protection involving the “healing” and “regenerating” power of fire.

In ancient times, indeed, bonfires were lit to celebrate the winter solstice and the beginning of the new year, marking the return of light and hope. These pagan traditions have blended over time with Christian cult, shaping a unique celebration combining religious spirituality and ancestral symbolism, a combination that is very present in the varied Sardinian cultural and folkloric scene, quite clear in celebrations such as Feast of Sant’Efisio, patron saint of the People of Sardinia, and Is Animeddas, the feast of souls that, despite its similarities with some of the themes of the Celtic All Hallows’ Eve (actual Halloween), seems to have developed independently in Sardinia, drawing on customs and rituals inherent in the daily life of the communities that anciently dwelled in the island.

Furthermore, the impactful community and gathering power of Sant’Antonio’s celebration in some ways acts as a bond between its religious dimension and its attachment to the earthly elements: the whole town is involved in the preparation of the high pyres and in the ignition of the bonfire, which becomes the meeting point for people to unite and celebrate together.

The magic of Sant’Antonio of Fire therefore lies in the evocative power of the rituals, and also in the energy that flows between individuals, the warmth that becomes shared, the intensity of an experience that touches the soul, arouses emotions that remain imprinted in the heart, and renews bonds with tradition, creating an invisible bridge from past to present.

Fire of Sant’Antonio, a ritual hanging between sacred and profane

This same dualism between sacred and profane, personal and collective, nature and society, is also inherent in the cult of Antonio Abate (Anthony Abbot), patron saint of pastoralism and agriculture, which presents an evident parallel with the rebel Prometheus, Titan of Greek mythology who stole fire from the Gods to give it to humans. Fire, first considered an uncontrollable natural element, to fear and dominate, a primordial mysterious force, turns into a means of aggregation and sharing, a powerful factor for the technological progress of mankind.

Even the fire of Sant’Antonio, like that of the Greek hero, represents an act of rebellion against the fear of the unknown and spiritual misery. The lighting of the fire is a moment of rebirth, purification, which marks the passage from darkness to light, symbolizing the victory of life over death and new hope over despair. Not to mention that with fire, the community warms itself, protects itself and especially renews itself, celebrating the saint and the same community through an act of strong symbolism and tradition.

Furthermore, even in the sharing of food and wine, which often follows the ignition of fires, one can see a clear reference to Christian communion, yet the rich banquets that were arranged to pay homage to Dionysus, Greek God of wine and mystical delirium. The latter, a symbol of ecstasy, irrationality and abandonment to the pleasures of life, is often contrasted with Prometheus, a rational and forward-looking personality, whose myth represents a key passage in human history: the mastery of fire and the development of technology.

This contrast between Dionysus and Prometheus, thus ecstasy and reason, emotion and progress, finds an iconic fusion in the celebration itself. Around the bonfires, the community experiences the power of technology, which has made fire a controlled force, and the collective enthusiasm of a ritual recalling ancient Dionysian impulses, creating a balance between order and chaos, progress and passion.

Same goes for the complex ritual of the ignition of bonfires, in which nowadays are still strong the contaminations with the value of ancestral rites and the iconic characteristics of pagan Gods worshiped in Sardinia much before the arrival of the first Christian preachers.

Fires of Sant’Antonio, the complex rituals of the bonfires ignition

In fact, it all begins in the afternoon on January 16, the eve of Sant’Antonio, a day known as su pesperu, during which the inhabitants of Sardinian villages gather to collect wood and build the enormous pyres, the variety of which changes from region to region.

We can thus find bonfires made of sa tuva, very common especially in Gallura, so a hollow trunk of a centuries-old oak tree without branches and roots, inside which, according to tradition, spirits were hosted to judge the actions of men, then sas frascas, typical branches of the Mediterranean scrub, such as strawberry tree’s, mastic tree’s and cistus’s, but also su romasinu, typical of some places around Nuoro such as Dorgali and Siniscola, only made with branches of rosemary, a plant that symbolizes renewal and purification. The collection and preparation of the material require great commitment, an act of devotion that reflects the strong bond with the land and the community.

Although each town has its own variations, faithfully handed down for generations, one element that unites them all is the parade that accompanies the wood to the main square of the town. The transport, which in past took place on carts pulled by oxen, today is mainly carried out by tractors, accompanied by the sound of Launeddas, traditional wind musical instruments that creates a hypnotic polyphony, enveloping participants into a magical atmosphere. The construction of the bonfire is also meticulous: logs are arranged in such a way as to form a stable and imposing structure, decorated with religious and natural symbols, to recall the protection of the Saint.

On the evening of January 17, the day dedicated to Antonio, the ritual begins with the mass and the blessing of the bonfire (in some places in the Sardinian hinterland the night of the celebration is preceded by a so-called novena, nine days of prayers in honor of the Saint), around which the local priest and the devotees turn for three times (a number representing Trinity, the perfection of Lord’s creation), first clockwise and then counterclockwise, reciting many prayers.

In some places, young people try their hand at jumping over flames and embers, a symbolic gesture of courage and good luck for the new year, while others throw twigs or objects with a particular symbolic and emotional value into the flames, to free themselves of negative and make room for what they wish to achieve in the new year. Anyway, what makes this celebration truly unique are dances and chants that, together with the heat of the fire, warm the soul and body of the participants on one of the coldest nights of the year.

Sharing food and wine is a must: among the dishes that abound on the tables of the festival, fruit and dried fruit, especially oranges, symbol of fertility and prosperity, which serve as a good omen for the upcoming sowing season, but also traditional Sardinian dishes, such as broad beans and lard, potatoes, spit-roasted porceddu and panadas, a dessert made with semolina flour and lard, filled with honey. Typical of Nuoro and surroundings is then su pistiddu, a sort of sweet focaccia made with semolina, filled with honey and flavored with orange peel, then decorated with a small cross in the middle.

The night of Sant’Antonio even marks the first appearance of the Sardinian Carnival masks in some towns, including scary Mamuthones, with their black wooden masks, sheepskin coats, and belts with bells, and benevolent Issohadores, typical figures of the famous Carnival of Mamoiada, a town in Barbagia di Ollolai, in the innermost and wildest side of the island.

The celebrations then end on January 18, the day of Sant’Antoneddu, when the community gathers to watch the last fires go out, and to exchange, finally, traditional sweets and wine, a symbol of friendship and sharing. This moment takes on a strong value: the ashes, icon of what has been purified and transformed, preserve the memory of the fire, while the heat that further persists represents the vital energy of the community. In many traditions, the ashes of the fire of Sant’Antonio are carefully collected and used as protection against diseases for humans and animals or as a wish for a rich harvest.

The burning embers are often brought back homes to relight the domestic hearths, a gesture that highlights the bond between the community fire and the family fire, keeping alive the connection between sacred and everyday life. In short, the perfect conclusion to a ritual that unites people, making them feel part of something bigger, and wishing them prosperity and renewal for the year that has just begun.

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