St. Mark's Day
St. Mark's Day (Italian: Festa di San Marco), also known as the rosebud festival (Venetian: festa del bocolo), is a festival in Venice held on 25 April celebrating Venice's patron saint, St. Mark. On this day, men traditionally give a single rosebud to the women they love.[1][2][3]
Legend
According to legend, the tradition originated in the 8th century, when a man of low social standing is said to have fallen in love with a noblewoman from Venice. In order to win her father's approval, he became involved in a distant war. He was mortally wounded in battle, but managed to pluck a rose from a nearby rosebush for his loved one. A companion was entrusted with returning the blood-stained rose to his lover.[3][4][5]
See also
Notes
- ↑ Bing, Alison. "Venice & the Veneto", 2010.
- ↑ http://www.veneziasi.it/it/tradizioni-venezia/festa-san-marco.html
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Touring Club Italiano. "Guida d'Italia, Venezia", 1985.
- ↑ http://veniceblog.typepad.com/veniceblog/2004/04/the_legend_of_t.html
- ↑ http://www.ombra.net/tradizione/festa-san-marco/index.php