Joust of the Saracen of Arezzo

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The Giostra del Saracino is the main folkloristic event in the city of Arezzo and takes place in two periods of the year.
Piazza Grande
, in fact, becomes the setting for the challenge on the penultimate Saturday of June, at night, and on the first Sunday of September, during the day.

The first is dedicated to San Donato, the patron saint of the city, and for this reason it is called Giostra di San Donato; the second, on the other hand, is also called the Joust of the Madonna del Conforto, as it is dedicated to the patron saint of Arezzo.

The Giostra del Saracino boasts ancient origins: the first events were also organized in the Middle Ages, becoming a characteristic element of the Arezzo area. Dante Alighieri himself, in Canto XXII of the Inferno, describes the atmosphere as follows: Corridor I saw for your land, O Aretini, and I saw gir gualdane, fedir torneamenti e correr giostra.

With the exception of the interruption due to the Second World War, the Giostra del Saracino is held regularly every year. Competing for the Lancia d’Oro, the coveted trophy made of walnut, lime or maple wood, are the four districts into which the city is divided, namely the Porta Crucifera District, the Porta del Foro District, the Porta Sant’Andrea District and the Porta Santo Spirito District.

Each district has two jousters (or “knights”) and is entitled to two careers, which are run according to the order drawn on the previous Sunday at the Civic Palace. In every career the jouster wields a wooden spear. To the signal given by the Field Master, the knight rides along the lizza (the strip of beaten earth that runs obliquely through Piazza Grande) and throws himself against the Sieve, a metal puppet, spring-loaded and equipped with a shield in his left hand and armed with a flail (the medieval instrument consisting of a whip with three strings, at the ends of which are wooden and leather balls with weight) in the right.

The competition is preceded by a historical parade, the performance of the Flag-wavers and accompanied by the sound of the clarions of the Gruppo Musici della Giostra del Saracino.