The Giglio Celebration in Brooklyn
By Jeanette O'Keefe
21 July 2008
In the year 410, North African pirates took over Nola, a little town in southern Italy. The Bishop of Nola, Paolino, fled to the countryside with the rest of the town's residents. When he returned, Paolino learned from a sobbing mother of her son who was abducted into slavery by the pirates. Bishop Paolino offered himself in exchange for the boy and was taken to North Africa. When a Turkish Sultan learned of Paolino's compassion, he helped negotiate his release, which ultimately freed Paolino.
Paolino was welcomed back home with a flowering of white lilies (gigli). Paolino's homecoming in Nola was the first of what would become an annual celebration, with the the traditional lifting of a huge structure called "the Giglio."
This tradition first began in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, 105 years ago by the southern Italian immigrants adjusting to their new life in America. One hundred paranza (lifters) lift the Giglio during the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Feast.
The structure weighs about 4 tons and is over 65 feet tall. A band plays atop the Giglio as it floats around and it's a very festive occasion for all.
More Photo Essays
