Sagra del Pesce in Camogli
Information about the Fish Feast in Camogli, Italy, include these details about the frying pan used to prepare the pesce:
- Total weight (handle and cover included) 3650 kilograms (about 8,046 pounds)
- Diameter 3.85 meters (about 12-1/2 feet)
- Length of handle 5.5 meters (about 18 feet)
(yes, that’s a photo of the pan, above, courtesy of the Tourist Board of Camogli)
Sagra del Pesce claims the largest frying pan in the world. It’s used to prepare the feast in the seaside community of Camogli (near Genoa, Italy) on the second Sunday of May — this year’s date is May 8, 2011.
The event started as a spontaneous gesture by some residents of the town (referred to as Camoglini) who decided, back in 1952, to offer to visitors some fried fish. Since then, this tradition has been transformed into a feast that involves the entire town.
Sagra del Pesce is linked to the celebration of San Fortunato, patron saint of fishermen. The night before the feast (after a religious celebration), bonfires illuminate the beach.
Where did the name of the town come from? There are many ideas. Camuggi in the Genoese dialect means “house of the wives” (their fisherman/husbands were out at sea). Another says that cà a muggi (“packed houses”) is what the town looked like from out at sea. Scholars lean toward the prosaic: the name Camogli comes from an Etruscan/Celtic deity — Camulo/Camolio.