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Legend says that a painting of a Madonnaburied beneath the earth was found by some hens scratching in a coop. The image is said to have performed eight miracles in a short time. It all began in 1609. In Pagani, a small town in south of Italy, seven days after Easter, people celebrate Saint Mary the Crownedof Carmel (commonly known as Our Lady of the Hens). It is both a religious and civil festivity.
The long wait for the Madonna marks the days preceding the celebration when the statue, covered with live birds, moves throughout the city streets and alleyways. It passes by shrines finely set with satin and lace. They are called toselli, symbols of maternity. This results in the tradition of every family giving hens or doves or turkeys to the church for this period, as a symbolic gift. The population participates animated by a strong faith until the day of the feast when everything melts into a riot of dances and songs. Pagani, Italy