Ceramic holy water font depicting the sacred San Domenico statue of Cocullo covered in live snakes. Acquired directly during the Festa di San Domenico in Cocullo, Italy in May 2026, the piece functions both as a devotional object and as a physical artifact tied directly to the Italian serpent festival.
Acquired / Origin
Acquired during the Festa di San Domenico in Cocullo, Abruzzo, Italy, May 2026.
Use
Traditionally mounted near the entrance of a home and filled with holy water for blessing oneself upon entering or leaving.
Description
This ceramic acquasantiera depicts the sacred statue of San Domenico di Sora as it appears during the Cocullo procession, covered in live snakes placed onto the saint by the local serpari (snake handlers). The statue is especially revered because at the center of its chest is a cavity containing one of the saint’s tooth relics.
San Domenico became associated with protection from snake bites and venomous animals, leading devotees to drape living snakes over the statue during the annual procession through the town. The ritual is widely understood to contain both Catholic and older pre Christian pagan serpent traditions that existed in the region prior to Christianization.
