Pupnat Celebrates Our Lady of the Snows and Victory Day
Residents and thousands of visitors united religious tradition, cultural heritage, and homeland gratitude at a unique feast that confirmed Pupnat as a top host on the island of Korčula.
Residents and thousands of visitors united religious tradition, cultural heritage, and homeland gratitude at a unique feast that confirmed Pupnat as a top host on the island of Korčula.
Pupnat, a small village on the island of Korčula, once again shone in full glory. The celebration held on August 6, 2026, brought together several important dates into one: the feast of Our Lady of the Snows, the Day of the Village and the Knightly Association Kumpanjija, and Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and the Day of Croatian Defenders. The event attracted hundreds of people, confirming the reputation of Pupnat's residents as excellent hosts.
The central event was a holy mass, followed by a procession. In keeping with a long-standing custom, the statue of Our Lady of the Snows was carried through the village by girls dressed in white, bearing witness to traditions carefully passed down from generation to generation. This feast, celebrated in Pupnat for nearly four centuries, was this year also imbued with the memory of the 31st anniversary of the military-police operation Storm in 1995.
The morning hours were reserved for paying tribute. Wreaths were laid and candles lit for all Croatian defenders who gave their lives for freedom, as well as for civilian victims of war. Retired Navy Captain Tomislav Katić addressed the gathering on behalf of four island veterans' associations: UHRV Korčula, UHDDR Korčula, UHRV Čara, and UBD, Korčula Branch. He recalled November 1991, when he commanded the defense of the island, and the first official victory of Croatian forces, the breaking of the third naval blockade by the Yugoslav Navy in the Korčula Channel.
Those gathered were then addressed by the Mayor of Korčula, Frano Jeričević. He thanked the defenders for the free state and the residents of Pupnat for the impeccable organization of the central celebration of the City of Korčula. He emphasized that hundreds of people come to the village precisely on August 5 because they feel welcome there.
"Victory is not just what happened in 1995. Victory is also every time we solve a problem through unity that seemed unsolvable for years. When we leave something better for those who come after us. When we preserve our place, our tradition, our customs, and our people," Jeričević said.
Among the distinguished guests were Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia and Minister of Spatial Planning, Construction and State Property Branko Bačić, State Secretary at the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds Zrinka Raguž, Dubrovnik-Neretva County Prefect Blaž Pezo, his deputy Joško Cebalo, and President of the County Assembly Nikola Dobroslavić.
The afternoon began with a performance by the Knightly Association Kumpanjija Pupnat, which performed its most solemn traditional dance of swords, followed by the kumpanjoli dancing the old ball with their girls. Then came the Korčula moreška performed by the Moreška-Korčula society, and a special touch was added by the local mixed klapa Koštil, which celebrates ten years of work this year.
From noon, the smell of oxen roasting on spits for hours spread through the village center. This centuries-old custom, which once provided a warm meat meal for the entire village, remains a key part of Pupnat's identity today. Although the old practice of "cutting off the ox's head" has long been abandoned, the roasted ox remains a famous specialty that attracts food lovers from the entire region.
The highlight of the evening came with concerts by Maja Šuput and Jole. Thousands of visitors filled the village center, singing and dancing until the early morning hours, confirming that this is one of the most famous summer feasts on the island.
Before the cultural program, professionally hosted by Mirela Botica, began, a brief downpour descended from a clear sky. Although there was not a cloud in sight, large drops of summer rain did not disperse the visitors; they only cooled the heat. No weather app had forecast this precipitation, which the islanders immediately commented on in their characteristic way.
"How long will the downpour last, what do the apps say?" asked one island woman, and an island man concluded: "It will last just enough to cool us down, is it Our Lady of the Snows or not?"
Yes, it is Our Lady of the Snows, in Pupnat for nearly 400 years. And again next year, as for centuries past.
