A tradition capable of spanning the centuries and captivating millions of people with its beauty. The Varia di Palmi is part of the world heritage recognized by UNESCO and brings with it a wealth of culture and religious devotion that have always fascinated both the citizens of Palmi and the tourists: a crowd that at each edition, on the last Sunday in August, he meets to admire the spectacle offered by the imposing votive float dedicated to Our Lady of the Sacred Letter. The origins of the Varia date back to more than four hundred years ago, and are linked to the generosity and hospitality of the inhabitants of Palma. It all began in June 1575, when Messina was hit by an epidemic of plague which led to the death of over 40,000 people. Faced with such a drama, Palmi decided to go to the rescue of the Sicilian city, sending aid by sea and welcoming people fleeing the terrible disease. After the calamity, as a sign of thanks for the support received, the Senate of the City of Messina donated to the ecclesial authorities of Palma one of the hairs that according to tradition belonged to the Madonna and which, together with a letter of blessing, would have been given away in 42 AD. to a delegation from Messina who had gone to visit her. Thus it was that, in January 1582, the vessel of Giuseppe Tigano, with a crowd of boats in tow, brought the Holy Hair of the Virgin from Messina to the Marina of Palmi. From that moment, the people of Palme began to venerate the Madonna of the Sacred Letter and her black effigy enclosed in a silver mantle. Furthermore, on the model of Messina, it was decided to create a votive chariot representing the Assumption of Mary into Heaven.

“Varia” in fact derives from “vara”, a dialectal term meaning “coffin”: a sepulcher from which the Madonna rises to be taken up into heaven, surrounded by angels and apostles. In 1733, the Sacred Congregation of Rites set the date for the celebration on the last Sunday of August. The ancient Varia was carried on the shoulders of the bearers, called “‘mbuttaturi”, who walked along the main course of Palmi, in beaten earth. In 1872, after a series of accidents, the transport of the Varia was suppressed, while the Madonna of the Sacred Letter continued to be celebrated annually with illuminations, fireworks and with the procession of the Holy Capello. In 1900, after almost 30 years, Palmi resumed the Varia event and Giuseppe Militano devised a “Mechanical Varia”, similar to the ancient one, which however was no longer carried on the shoulders of the bearers but slid by push thanks to four iron skates fixed under the base of the structure.

Thus it was that, at the beginning of the last century, Palmi resumed celebrating the festival, thanks to the ingenuity of Giuseppe Militano and the work of Rocco Isola Pelorosso, organizer of the event, “Il Gran Mago della Bara”, as he had it to define the Palmese writer Leonida Repaci in the novel “History of the Rupe Brothers”.