Easter in Arriate

In Arriate, the big Easter stars are the so-called Cristinos and the Jesuits. The former are the brethren in the Brotherhood of Santísimo Cristo de la Sangre y Santo Entierro (Holy Christ of Blood and Holy Burial). They take out their Holy Images on carved gilded wood floats – the Holy Burial Float is a majestic piece by the Seville-born religious sculptor Antonio Castillo Lastrucci, lavish with majestic red carnations and the coffin with a recumbent Christ, carried by four polychrome angels and four Passion children, who seems to emerge from them, in an impressive, grave figure.

As to the Jesuits, they belong to the Royal, Old and Venerable Brotherhood of Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno (Father Jesus of Nazareth). They take out two floats on Maundy Thursday. The first of them comes out at dawn, at 6.30am – Jesus with His hands tied on a nickel silver float from the workshop of the Seville-based silversmith Miguel de los Ríos – with the Big Brother knocking at the doors for the procession, reaching El Callejón, where Father Jesus has sent His blessings to the people of Arriate for the past 300 years. Then, at midnight, Father Jesus carries his Cross, helped by Simon of Cyrene, on a gold and silver float by the Angulo Brothers from Lucena, accompanied by Our Lady of Sorrows (Castillo Lastrucci). The night is filled with mystery and dignity. The procession goes down the main streets, reaching its climax when Jesus meets Virgin Mary.

Arriate is the only village in Málaga Province to hold a procession on Holy Saturday: the Holy Burial of Christ. On this occasion, the Jesuits wear their traditional purple robes and white hoods. The Cristinos, in turn, wear black belted robes and red hoods.