all images © Paco Feria

Semana Santa has been one of the most important celebrations in Spain since 16th Century when the Catholic Church decided to educate group of people about the events surrounding Christ's crucifixion.
The Cofradías (Brotherhoods or Fraternities) process in penitence through the streets of their city, from churches to the Cathedral and back. A public and multitudinous catechesis is performed in the streets around the sacred images of the brotherhoods, whose pasos (floats) represent the distinct stages of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Starting on Domingo de Ramos (Palm Sunday), and ending on Domingo de Resurrección (Easter Sunday), the many brotherhoods have pay the religious visit to the Cathedral. Processions usually leave from early afternoon onward, but the true climax is on Good Friday morning, the madruga, since on Thursday the procession leave at midnight and doesn't reach the Cathedral until the early hours of the morning. All day on Thursday local women wear in black and it's considered disrespectful for anybody to wear T-shirts or shorts.

The penitents strike an eerie image as they process through the town: they dress in long dark robes and tall pointed hoods, as no one is meant to be able to guess the identity of sinners who are seeking forgiveness. They carry candles to light their way, and more senior members of the brotherhood bear rods or banners.

Most brotherhoods carry two floats: a float with a Christ, representing one of the well known biblical scenes, in between the Last Supper and His Resurrection, and a float with a Dolorosa (Mary the Virgin in pain) under a canopy.
Some brotherhoods carry three floats, like the so-called: El Amor, La Cena, San Benito, or la Trinidad, others have just one like Santa Marta, La Quinta Angustia, la Soledad de San Buenaventura, or la Soledad de San Lorenzo.