ProfGMM

Excerpt from 𝘐𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘍𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦: 𝘙𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘊𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, & 𝘈𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴      The Festival of the Snake Catchers (or snake-charmers) (𝘍𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘪 𝘥𝘪 𝘊𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘰) is an annual festival held on May 1 in Cocullo, Italy in honor of San Domenico.      “In Cocullo, a medieval village in the Majella Mountains, the annual Festival of San Domenico Abate, or 𝘍𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘪 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘪 (Festival of the Snake-Catchers), on May 1 transforms the memory of the goddess Angitia into a Catholic feast day.       Nearly thirty thousand pilgrims gather in 𝘗𝘪𝘢𝘻𝘻𝘢 𝘔𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘦 (Our Lady of Graces Square), outside the church that houses the wooden statue of Saint Dominic. At dawn, villagers ring church bells with their teeth to ward off toothache and collect blessed earth from behind the saint’s statue. Visitors stroke snakes as brass bands play and fireworks erupt.       For the central ritual, snake-catchers drape San Domenico with dozens of live serpents. In this single morning, three millennia of goddess worship, Roman adaptation, and saintly devotion converge, the serpents continuing to honor the divine as they have since the region’s earliest mountain cults.” Pre-orders are open. Link in bio. #italianfolklore #sandomenico #cocullo #festadeiserpari #booksofinstagram

I grew up accepting the magical and the mystical as ordinary facts of life. My 𝘣𝘪𝘴𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘰's (great-grandfather's) childhood friend became a saint: Padre Pio (Saint Pio of Pietrelcina).     My 𝘣𝘪𝘴𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘢 (great-grandmother) was a 𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘦, a healer people sought out to diagnose and remove the 𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘰 (evil eye).     I have spent my adult life tracking folk and fairy-tale variants across all twenty regions of Italy, seeking to understand the world that produced them.    𝘐𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘍𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦: 𝘙𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘊𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘈𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 was born of that pursuit.   Rooted in original sources and fieldwork conducted throughout Italy, it documents a civilization where saints and witches shared the same landscape, the dead were never truly absent, and women were threshold keepers in communities that predate the Italian state by centuries.    Out September 22, 2026, Wellfleet Press (@quartobooksus /@quartobooksuk ).     Pre-orders are live. Link in bio.    #italianfolklore #italianfolktales #italianamerican #italianheritage #italianculture #italiantraditions #italianwitchcraft #witchesofinstagram #italianfood #folklore #folkmagic #strega #guaritrice #saints #mystics #fiabe #folktales #healers #ritual #bookstagram #booktok #author #authorsofinstagram #nonfiction #booksofinstagram #quartobooksus #quartobooksuk #wellfleetpress

figlia, sorella, moglie, mamma, zia, prozia, nonna, bisnonna 💕

She gathered beneath a walnut tree on the banks of the Sabato River to dance and perform rites. By day, she looked like anyone else. After dark, she slipped under doors, stole mares from their stables and rode them to exhaustion, and sat on the chests of sleepers, giving them nightmares. She is the 𝘫𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘢 of Benevento, one of hundreds of supernatural beings in 𝘐𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘍𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦: 𝘙𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘊𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 & 𝘈𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴. Pre-orders are live. Link in bio. Out September 22, 2026. Image caption: Le streghe alla Noce di Benevento, Guglielmo della Porta, ca. 1534-77. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. #ItalianFolklore #strega #witches #bookstagram #nonfiction

Letture estive Pre-order Italian Folklore. Link in bio. #italianfolklore #italianfolkmagic #healers #medicinapopulare #folkmedicine

What a thrill to receive a package today filled with these beautiful postcards for 𝘐𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘍𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦: 𝘙𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘊𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, & 𝘈𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴. I cannot wait until this book is out in the world. Pre-orders are live. Link in bio. Grazie @quartobooksus @quartobooksuk #italianfolklore #italianfolkmagic #italian #bookstagram #booksofinstagram

Il pane quotidiano

Fall 2026 MSU Course SLO: Analyzing Cultures and Societies "Witches, Healers, and Folk Magic" traces folk traditions from ancient origins through contemporary diaspora, exploring how women as threshold keepers preserved vital knowledge through healing, midwifery, and death rituals. Students analyze witch figures as reflections of anxieties about women's power and community authority, particularly during the witch hunts that swept through Europe from the 15th through 18th centuries. Drawing on trial records, folktales, ethnographic fieldwork, and literature, students investigate herbal healing traditions and protective rituals, examining how women transmitted folk practices despite suppression by church, state, and institutional medicine. Italy will be used as a case study.

Fall 2026 MSU Course (poster incorrectly says Spring) "Witches, Healers, and Folk Magic" traces folk traditions from ancient origins through contemporary diaspora, exploring how women as threshold keepers preserved vital knowledge through healing, midwifery, and death rituals. Students analyze witch figures as reflections of anxieties about women's power and community authority, particularly during the witch hunts that swept through Europe from the 15th through 18th centuries. Drawing on trial records, folktales, ethnographic fieldwork, and literature, students investigate herbal healing traditions and protective rituals, examining how women transmitted folk practices despite suppression by church, state, and institutional medicine. Italy will be used as a case study.

Italy is one of the most mystically charged places in the world, and its mysteries run deepest beneath the surface. This Fall Break program pulls back the layers to reveal a hidden world where the sacred and the secular intertwine. In Naples, saints perform miracles, healers remove the evil eye, and the cuisine reflects centuries of cultural memory. In Rome, ancient ritual and culinary tradition have shaped the city for millennia. The volcanic island of Ischia and the dramatic villages of the Amalfi Coast invite students into their storied landscapes. This is Italy experienced from the inside, tasted, witnessed, and written into memory. Whether drawn by folklore, religion, cuisine, or generational interest, students will leave with a richer understanding of Italy and the narratives that continue to animate it. Program Deadlines: Course Dates: Fall 2026 Travel Dates: Approximately October 18-25, 2026 Application Deadline:  May 15, 2026 Cost:  TBD Link in bio. Contact me for more details and for scholarship information.

No better way to spend a Saturday morning than at @fitnessfactoryholmdel with @doggynosesandyogaposes and @oscaranimalrescue , an animal rescue in NJ that finds homes for more than 7000 dogs and cats a year. Hope these beautiful puppies find their forever homes soon!