The procession of the Resurrection, also known as the Sunday of Glory procession, takes place on the morning of Resurrection Sunday, the eighth day after Christ’s entry into Jerusalem. This procession involves the images of the Risen Christ and the Virgin of the Assumption which are borne by penitents from various brotherhoods, this time without their hoods. Hundreds of townspeople come to celebrate the miracle of the resurrection in one of the events that bring Elche’s Holy Week to a close.
In Elche, this procession has a unique feature: as the floats pass through the streets, they do so amid a flurry of “hallelujahs” – small religious images on coloured paper that the townspeople throw from the balconies and roof terraces of their houses. Among the faithful it is customary to collect and keep their favourite images as a sign of their faith.
Palm Sunday
Holy Week celebrations begin on Palm Sunday, which was declared a Fiesta of International Tourist Interest in 1997.
The day’s main act is the Palm Procession which in Elche is of especial significance due to the large number of blanched palm leaves produced in the city’s palm groves and borne through the streets by the faithful.
The procession, commemorating Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem, has always had a large following and has become one of the most characteristic and popular expressions of Elx’s cultural identity.
The first documented evidence concerning Diumenge de Rams, Palm Sunday, dates from 1371, when the Consell de la Vila, or Town Council, took part in the celebrations, distributing alms.
Trade in blanched palm leaves was documented in an entry in the Town Hall records from 1492 and it has continued to the present day. For centuries blanched palm leaves from Elche have been exported to the entire Catholic world.
Special mention must be made of the woven palm leaves that are entered in the competition organised by the Council of Holy Week Guilds and Brotherhoods. These leaves depict complex figures related to the events of Holy Week or Elche’s monuments and traditions.
In the Municipal Park, Elche Town Hall has instituted a Blanched Palm Leaf Craft Workshop. This is located in a medieval flourmill (el Molí del Real) and the objective of the initiative is to ensure the survival of traditions and crafts related to Elche’s palm grove.