Jelsa UNESCO Za Krizen Easter Procession: 22 KM Through the Night in Pictures

More than 500 years of religious tradition was continued on March 24, 2016 in Jelsa on the island of Hvar, with the annual Za Krizen UNESCO Easter Procession. TCN partners Virtual Tour Hr walked through the night to capture its unique atmosphere.

It started promptly at 22:00 on Maundy Thursday, as the acolytes and crossbearer left the main church in Jelsa and proceeded through a packed main square, chanting their way through the town at the start of a 22-kilometre pilgrimage of prayer and reflection through the night along a route of five other villages who also had simultaneous processions departing.

As reported yesterday by TCN, the procession finished at 07:00 with the returning pilgrims arriving back on the main square, with the exhausted crossbearer running the last few steps to the awaiting priest (see video below).

TCN partners Virtual Tour Hr spent the night walking with the pilgrims. A photo special of a remarkable religious traditin which has now existed for more than 500 years on Hvar, and was inscribed as UNESCO intangible heritage in 2009.