It’s hard to say when the Rificolona was celebrated for the first time. As many of the popular Florentine feasts it was born as a religious celebration for the Nativity of the Virgin Mary and during the years it has become a ritual festival, that put together the sacred and the profane.

During the night before the day of the Nativity the Florentine families meet together in the streets of the town carrying long lanterns, made of paper or canvas, sometimes singing traditional refrains.

What does it come from?

In the past, in order to celebrate the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, the villains from the countryside around Florence came in town and used to gather close to the Church of the SS.ma Annunziata.

They were motivated by their devotion, but they also had an economic reason to be there: to participate to a market, that was organized on that day in the SS.ma Annunziata square and in the streets close to it and where they could expose and sell their goods.

You can easily imagine the arrival of this people to Florence: tired and dirty for the long travel, bad dressed and rough, carrying these big carts filled of things and vegetables and animals… arriving in town late in the evening or at night holding long lanterns to light their way.

The name Rificolona comes from the way the young Florentines used to call the peasant women in order to take fun of them, especially those with prominent curves. They called them Fieruculone, that means women who participate to a little fair (fierucola) but who have a large… butt (culone).

And what about today?

Today the name Rificolona is no longer referred to the peasant women, but to the lanterns themselves. In the past years these lanterns were homemade by the Florentine families, but now most of them are bought in shop. Well, maybe they have lost some of their charm, but the atmosphere during the night is always warm and preserves its traditional flavor.

Travel tips
September is an ideal month to visit Florence: the city is less crowded than in the August or July and the days are still long enough. It’s parfect for a holiday and to spend a day on a small group guided tour.