There has been a Passion procession from the Cathedral in Gozo since the early eighteenth century, though on a smaller scale. It was not until 1968 that it took its present form. The custom had been imported from Sicily, which in turn had adopted it from Seville in Spain.

The main attractions in the procession are seven life-size tableaux representing the principal moments of the passion of Jesus Christ: Christ at Gethsemane, Tal-Ort; The Scourging at the Pillar, Tal-Kolonna; The Crowning with Thorns, Tal-Porpra; The Fall under the Cross, l-Imghobbi; The Crucifixion, Il-Vara l-Kbira – the most majestic; The Procession to the Tomb, Il-Monument; and the Blessed Virgin Mary of Sorrows, id-Duluri.

The statues are made from papier-mâché, richly dressed in velvet clothes, just like those in Seville. The first four, which are religious baroque, are of Sicilian workmanship (c. 1700); the last three are by Gozitan Wistin Camilleri (1968-70).

The procession includes many boys and young men who are dressed in period costumes to add to the pageantry of the manifestation. The impressive Roman legion – a gleam of breastplates, spears, and shields announce themselves with trumpets and drums. The procession is accompanied around the streets of Victoria by the Leone Band.

Another procession with the statue of The Risen Lord, L-Irxoxt (the work of Michael Camilleri-Cauchi (2003), takes place in the streets close to the Cathedral on Easter Sunday morning.

The procession on Sunday, the 13 of April 2014, starts from the entrance to the Cathedral at 6.00pm.

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