Malpica del Tajo celebrates the festival of the Morraches

A FESTIVITY OF CELTIC ORIGIN TO VENERATE SAINT SEBASTIAN, WHICH TAKES PLACE ON JANUARY 20TH IN MALPICA DE TAJO.

The Morraches are characters who wear a jumpsuit, topped with a hood and ponytail, dressed in red, green and yellow colors combined, alternately and randomly, in pairs and adorned with hearts of the remaining color. It is complemented with zumbas, cowbells, gandarros or esquilillas, which, fixed to the back of the waist by means of belts, straps or ropes, must be made to sound in a certain way and with a defined cadence by moving the ass vertically. They usually carry a truncheon or club, with which they symbolically threaten the image of the saint. The face is hidden with masks, generally of terrifying motifs or characters.

A PAGAN-RELIGIOUS FESTIVAL OF REGIONAL TOURIST INTEREST, WHICH BEGINS ON JANUARY 6 AND HAS ITS ZENITH ON JANUARY 20, WITHIN THE FESTIVITIES IN HONOR OF ST. SEBASTIAN.

Since January 6, they go to the hermitage at dusk to pray to Saint Sebastian and during the central days of the festivities they go through the streets “scaring” their neighbors and simulating their voice and figure so as not to be recognized. From January 6 to January 18 the Morraches carry a candle to San Sebastian, the image of San Sebastian is in the hermitage, located next to the cemetery about a kilometer from the village. During these days the morraches wear their costumes, and the cowbells ringing and performing a tour through different streets of the town, traditionally the neighbors go out to the street to see the passage of the morraches.

On January 19, the main events of this festival are held, the culmination of which is reached on the 20th of that month with the procession and the pujas in honor of San Sebastian, events in which the morraches are the main actors of this celebration. The Morraches participate in all the celebrations of the Feast of St. Sebastian, from January 19 to 22. They are a central element of the festival, filling the streets and processions with color, noise and revelry; making jokes and falsely “threatening” the attendees with their truncheons.

A CELEBRATION WITH A DEEP-ROOTED TRADITION THAT GOES BACK TO CELTIC CELEBRATIONS IN PRE-ROMAN TIMES.

There are two theories about the origin of these characters: One is that the roots of this celebration are related to nature and the belief that there were certain genies of the forest that, with their magic, influenced the growth of crops. The second theory is that they were peddling harlequin characters who, in medieval times, traveled through the villages. In order to get the peasants to give them money, they would perform funny pirouettes, always ending up falling on the ground, to the laughter of the audience.

LUDIC EVENTS, FIREWORKS AND VARIOUS RELIGIOUS EVENTS COMPLETE THIS FESTIVITY OF TOURIST INTEREST

The fire or the bulls of gunpowder mark, together with the morraches, the differentiating character of this celebration. A tradition that will not leave indifferent all those visitors who want to know the ethnographic character and the popular tradition of this town in Toledo.

MORE INFORMATION

https://www.malpicadetajo.es/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=173&Itemid=685