Corfu celebrates the First Resurrection!
Photo: Dimitris Priftis
Pupils, scouts, and the three philharmonic bands filled the narrow streets just before the town shook with the smashing of the clay pots (botides).
Corfu on Easter Saturday isn’t merely a destination—it’s an emotion, pulsing with the music of the philharmonic bands and the scent of clay breaking across the streets.
Photos: Dimitris Priftis
There are moments when tradition becomes one with the soul of a place—and today in Corfu, we experienced it to the fullest.
Photo: Stamatis Katapodis
Photo: Stamatis Katapodis
Photo: Spyros Sourvinos
The day began with the imposing procession of Saint Spyridon. A sea of people flooded the streets and Spianada Square. Pupils, scouts, and the island’s three great philharmonic bands (“Old,” “Mantzaros,” and “Capodistrias”) set the rhythm. Solemn yet majestic marches, such as “Amleto,” sent shivers of emotion, creating an atmosphere you can only experience in Corfu.
At exactly 11:00, the scene changed in an instant. With the signal of the First Resurrection, solemn devotion gave way to excitement:
Red clay pots (botides) began to crash down forcefully from every balcony in the Old Town.
Photo: Stamatis Katapodis - Regional Governor Yiannis Trepeklis with Olga Kefaloyianni
The deafening sound of clay shattering on the cobblestones symbolises the triumph of life over death and the “driving away” of evil.
Thousands of people, united as one, applauding and exchanging wishes of “Happy Resurrection” amid the shards of the smashed pots.
ELENI KORONAKI
