The Palio dei Terzieri is a historical re-enactment that has been held in Città della Pieve since 1973, typically on the first or second Sunday following August 15th.
The event is set during a period spanning just under a century, from 1450 to 1523, which coincides with the cultural and artistic influence of the town’s most distinguished citizen, the painter Pietro Vannucci, known as Perugino, who was the master of Raphael.
This competition involves the city’s three districts (Castello, Casalino, and Borgo Dentro), and it recreates the atmosphere of the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries when the “Cacce del Toro” (Bull Hunts) – rudimentary contests involving the use of spears – took place in Castel della Pieve.
Today, the ancient challenge has been revived in the form of an archery competition, where participants aim at bull-shaped targets placed on a circular moving platform.
There are three bulls (one for each district), three heats, and three movement speeds. The score varies based on the part of the figure struck by the archer (15 points for the head, 9 for the neck, and 6 for the body).
The race is preceded by a historical procession, featuring around 800 participants dressed in Renaissance attire, along with war machines such as cannons, catapults, crossbows, guns, a siege tower, and more.
Before the archery competition in August, the Terzieri engage in the “Launch of the Challenge”, an event marked by insults and jests, despite the solemnity of the occasion, underscored by the presence of prominent authorities and the Podestà of Castel de la Pieve.
The previous year’s winner ceremoniously returns the Pallium to the Podestà, who safeguards it in the town hall until the following Sunday, the day of the Bull Hunt. On this day, the Pallium is displayed during the grand historical procession. The Launch of the Challenge, the Bull Hunt, and the historical procession together embody the essence of the Palio dei Terzieri.
Throughout the festive days, each Terziere opens its Tavern every evening, offering a variety of special dishes.