Lo Squarcia guesthouse in Ascoli Piceno

Lo Squarcia: location

The guesthouse is on Piazza Giacomo Matteotti, in Ascoli Piceno.

Lo Squarcia: what to see nearby

Squarcia is also the name of the Campo dei Giochi, the jousting field between Malatesta Fort and the Church of San Vittore, where the Giostra della Quintana is run, the historical reenactment in honor of the patron saint Sant'Emidio. The six knights represent the city's districts (sestieri), four named after the ancient gates (Porta Maggiore, Porta Romana, Porta Solestà, Porta Tufilla), one after the patron saint and one after the Piazzarola, the upper part of the city; they compete on a figure-eight course lined with hedges, striking with the lance the target on the arm of the Saracen. Each knight rides three laps, for a total of nine charges.

The joust is run on the evening of the second Saturday of July, in homage to the Madonna della Pace venerated in the Church of Sant'Agostino, and on the afternoon of the first Sunday of August, in honor of Sant'Emidio. On the eve of the August joust, the bishop blesses horses and knights in front of the Cathedral, on Piazza Arringo, and the Bando di Sfida (the proclamation of the challenge) is read. The modern version dates back to 1955; the winning district receives the Palio, a silk or velvet banner painted each year by well-known artists, including Nespolo, Pericoli, Tadini and Omar Galliani.