The Palio of the Contrade of Buti

One of the oldest horse poles is held in the municipality of Buti, along with those of Siena, Ferrara, and Asti. The event is held every year for one week in January, and the day of the race is always the Sunday following the 17th, dedicated to St. Anthony Abbot. During the event, each contrada (seven in total) organizes-after celebrating Holy Mass in their respective churches-a banquet with various delicacies typical of the contrada itself. One dinner each night until the main one, which is held on the Friday before the race. The final dinner is attended by the leaders and other members of the contrade (more than a hundred people) and traditional local dishes such as tripe, which is also considered propitiatory for the festival, are served. On the day of the Palio proper - at the end of the Holy Mass of the Cavallai - the contrade parade through the streets of the town and reach the parvis of the cathedral, where the jockeys are given their jackets and caps and the horses are blessed. In the afternoon, the Palio is held along an uphill course of about 800 meters and for a total of four races, each with three horses.