Every January on Saint Sebastian Day, the streets of Piornal, Spain, fill with residents armed with turnips, seeking to punish the Jarramplas. The Jarramplas is a devil-like character portrayed by a person wearing a costume made from colorful strips of fabric, a frightening horned mask, and body armor underneath. In a centuries-old tradition, the beast walks the streets and beats a drum while residents pelt it with turnips as punishment for stealing cattle. Though the exact origin of the festival is not known, various theories exist, including the mythological punishment of Cacus by Hercules and a cattle thief ridiculed and expelled by his neighbors. Below are images from the Jarramplas festival from the past several years.
Hurling Turnips at the Jarramplas
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![A person wearing a large costume and mask stands in front of a door while dozens of turnips fly at them.]()
Read morePeople throw turnips at the Jarramplas as he makes his way through the streets, beating his drum, during the Jarramplas festival in the tiny town of Piornal, Spain, on January 20, 2017. #
Daniel Ochoa de Olza / AP -
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![About a dozen young people reach down to pick up turnips from a pile sitting on a street.]()
Read moreYoung people collect turnips to throw at the Jarramplas, in Piornal, on January 19, 2017. #
Gerard Julien / AFP / Getty -
![A crowd of people duck and throw turnips at a person wearing a multicolored costume.]()
Read morePeople throw turnips at the Jarramplas beating his drum in Piornal on January 19, 2017. #
Gerard Julien / AFP / Getty -
![A man holds up a large turnip.]()
Read moreA man holds up a turnip at the Jarramplas festival on January 20, 2017. #
Daniel Ochoa de Olza / AP -
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![People throw turnips at the Jarramplas, a person in a colorful costume.]()
Read morePeople throw turnips at the Jarramplas as he makes his way through the streets on January 20, 2017. #
Daniel Ochoa de Olza / AP -
![A crowd of people stand close to a person wearing a colorful costume, throwing turnips at them.]()
Read morePeople throw turnips at the Jarramplas on January 20, 2017. #
Daniel Ochoa de Olza / AP -
![An exhausted-looking man, mask removed but costume still on, is seen among others in a street.]()
Read moreA man representing the Jarramplas, without his mask, stands in Piornal on January 19, 2017, during the annual San Sebastián festivities. #
Gerard Julien / AFP / Getty -
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![People reach down to grab turnips from a pile.]()
Read moreIn this January 19, 2019, photo, people grab turnips to throw at the Jarramplas. #
Javier Fergo / AP -
![A costumed figure is pummeled by turnips thrown by a group of people.]()
Read morePeople throw turnips at the Jarramplas on January 19, 2019, in Piornal. #
Javier Fergo / AP -
![A costumed person stands on several steps outside of a building while people throw turnips at them.]()
Read moreA crowd hurls turnips at the Jarramplas as he beats his drum on January 19, 2019. #
Javier Fergo / AP -
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![Thrown turnips bounce off of a costumed person.]()
Read moreTurnips fly as the Jarramplas makes his way through the streets of Piornal on January 19, 2019. #
Javier Fergo / AP -
![An exhausted man, covered in turnip debris, is hugged and celebrated by a mob.]()
Read moreMiguel Angel Moreno is lifted by people after playing the Jarramplas on January 20, 2019. #
Javier Fergo / AP -
![A crowd of people throws turnips at a costumed person sitting on a bench.]()
Read moreA group throws turnips at the Jarramplas, seated on a bench, on January 19, 2020. #
Manu Fernandez / AP -
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![A costumed person walks on a street as a crowd hurls turnips at them.]()
Read moreThe Jarramplas walks through a hail of turnips in Piornal on January 19, 2020. #
Manu Fernandez / AP -
![A costumed person leans against a wall as a crowd throws turnips.]()
Read moreOn January 19, 2022, people throw turnips at the Jarramplas during the Jarramplas festival. #
Isabel Infantes / Getty -
![People throw turnips at a costumed person who stands before a tall stone cross.]()
Read morePeople throw turnips at the Jarramplas on January 19, 2022. #
Isabel Infantes / Getty -
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![Turnips bounce off of a costumed person carrying a drum.]()
Read moreTurnips bounce off the Jarramplas on January 19, 2022. #
Isabel Infantes / Getty -
![A young woman, mask removed but still in costume, is embraced by others in a crowd.]()
Read moreMaria Hernando, 27, the first woman to wear the traditional Jarramplas costume, celebrates with friends and family at the end of her walk during the Jarramplas festival in Piornal, Spain, on January 19, 2022. #
Isabel Infantes / Getty
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