Official Portal of Tourism. Junta de Castilla y Leon

The rituals that take place in the so-called Twelve-Day Cycle, from Christmas to Kings, contain a rich symbolism that often goes unnoticed by the public among the quirky outfits of the characters and their irreverent behavior. These festive winter celebrations related to the culture, history and religions of antiquity also speak of their humorous tone of the agrarian cycle that is slowly beginning to awaken, of the kingdom of light and the power of the sun. The mysterious beings that animate the small towns on those dates enhance the passage of young people into adulthood, underline the fertility of the fields from the clouds of cernada (ash) that the filandorros generously pour to children, young and old . Identifying signs of the masquerades are also the songs in a critical tone that intone molacillos and blind, a kind of social therapy that purifies the rural community. The winter solstice and its festive events, full of fantasy and primitivism, have their origin in pagan culture although from the Middle Ages they were impregnated with a certain Christian influence, an evident contradiction that reflects the ascendant of authority in the feeling of the communities local through the passage of time.

In the tradition of Los Carochos some magical elements (ash, flagellation, vine branches, hammer) follow one another that can be considered fertility rites impregnated with fascination.

Its current name comes from the carocha (mask), with which some of the participants wear to cover their faces. These situations are funny and the people sing traditional comic verses.

In the square the accident happens. The cart turns over and the ciego dies. the molacillo calls for a vet and a priest, characters that may be any villager. The gitana appears to be transformed into a new person: the filandorra, dressed in and threads and throwing ashes at everybody.