Each year, the medieval Umbrian town of Spello transforms its quiet streets into beautiful works of art for Infiorata, a festival that takes place on Corpus Christi, the third Sunday in June. Spello's 8,000 inhabitants are all active participants in painting religious themes on the streets, not with paints and brushes, but with flower petals to celebrate the miracle of transubstantiation. The origins of flower festivals can be traced back to the 17th century when altars were adorned with flowers, and it was first known to take place in the city streets in the late 18th century. Infiorata can be linked to ancient festivals in honor of Aphrodite, the goddess of blooming plants, or Adonis, the god whose gardens were thrown in the sea during the summer.

The people of Spello begin collecting flowers from the countryside up to two weeks in advance, and to preserve the flowers they are stored in garages or underground areas. The elderly women of the town fastidiously separate the petals by color creating a subtly varied palate for the artists to create their masterpieces. Once the petals have been separated into a graduated spectrum, they are ready to be used. The artists put the petals into place using their fingers, then they pat them down with the back of a spoon.

Between 65 and 70 groups have designated plots and the designs have to be a minimum of 36 feet in length. They start working on the designs the day before and the trattorias give out hearty pasta dishes to help keep them working late into the night. The designs are judged and the winner gets a statue of Prioertius, a Roman poet that was born in Spello. The judges make their decisions over a feast of local specialties such as bruschetta al pomodoro with shaved truffle, crostini made of smoked salmon and liver pate with white beans and caviar, risotto with porcini mushrooms and wild asparagus, and the meal is topped of with la rocciata, a nut and fruit filled apple strudel.

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