THE TRADITIONAL PROCESSION OF “CAVALLETS I L’ESTENDARD”

ON THE 20th OF JANUARY, THE DAY OF THE SAINT SEBASTIÀ, POLLENÇA CELEBRATES THE TRADITIONAL PROCESSION OF “CAVALLETS I L’ESTENDARD”

It is the old winter Patron Saint of Pollença, despite its popularity nowadays it has been exceeded by Saint Antoni’s day.
 
An interesting procession in honour of the Saint has been preserved, in which two small horses dance at the sound of the pipe and small drum, -two young men inside the body of two carton horses - and the banner which symbolizes the saint with a huge flag is waved in a rhythmical and characteristic way.
 
The horses and banner also participate in the mass previous to the procession, and the “taules” (a dance performed outside the church, different from the other ones in rhythm) are danced later; this has been reduced today to the dance made around the bonfire in the middle of the Main Square and some other chosen spots around the town.
 
The banner and horse figures have not been absent from the popular and traditional culture, which have gracefully generated sayings which describe some of its typical distinctive characteristics.