Miranda do Douro will represent Portugal at the XV International Meeting of Anthropological Masks, taking place on September 4th and 5th, in the town of Tricarico, in the Italian region of Basilicata. The Miranda participation comes within the scope of an event that brings together groups from various countries, covering masked traditions from Europe and Latin America.
The Pauliteiros Mirandeses from Palaçoulo and the traditional figures of the Velha, Bailador and Bailadeira, from Vila Chã de Braciosa, will bring to the meeting some of the most emblematic manifestations of the intangible cultural heritage of the Terras de Miranda Plateau, promoting exchange between communities that keep alive rituals, music, dances and ancestral characters.
The Miranda participation occurs in a context of appreciation and safeguarding of these traditions. The ritual dances of the Pauliteiros were inscribed, in 2025, in the National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage, while the Municipality of Miranda do Douro is also preparing the safeguarding of ancestral mask rituals associated with the winter solstice.
In Tricarico, Miranda do Douro will thus have the opportunity to internationally showcase a heritage that continues to be lived and transmitted by the local communities of the Terras de Miranda Plateau.
