Every first Thursday in May, the Festa dei Serpari, or Festival of the Snake Catchers takes place in the small central Italian town of Cocullo, in the Abruzzo region of Italy.  This is really a religious festival celebrating the town's patron saint, St. Dominick, or San Domenico Abate, who lived in the 10th and 11th Centuries.  Legend has it that the saint had miraculous healing powers, especially over snakebites and toothaches.

The snake catchers (serpari) of the town actually start catching the snakes a couple of weeks before the festival.  They will remove the fangs, and then drape the statue of the patron saint with the reptiles.

The serpari will ceremoniously take the statue through streets of Cocullo covered with the snakes.  They are followed by the town clergy and a group of group of young girls dressed in special costumes.  These costumes are decorated with a local bread called ciambelli.

This bread resembles a snake biting its own tail.  The ancient tradition was to kill and cook the snakes at the end of the festival.  Today, the snakes are released in the fields outside of Cocullo.

To get there from Rome, take the Autostrada A25 Pescara-Roma.