A Ritual That Has Drawn Crowds for Centuries
Each year in the village of Castrillo de Murcia in northern Spain a moment arrives when the streets fall silent and families wait for an event that has taken place since the year sixteen hundred twenty. Visitors gather to watch men in striking red and yellow suits run toward rows of infants lying on small mattresses in the street.
The scene forms the core of a tradition known as El Colacho and it marks the most anticipated moment of the local Corpus Christi celebrations.
The Costume the Whip and the Castanets
The figure known as the Colacho appears dressed as the Devil in a bright outfit that carries a long history within the village. The Colacho holds a whip and large castanets and moves through the streets while taunting onlookers. This continues until the arrival of the atabalero drummers.
These drummers belong to a long standing group of pious men who signal that the jumps are about to begin. The drumming marks a shift from the playful approach of the Colacho to the formal act known as El Salto del Colacho which involves the jumps over the babies.
The Jump Over the Newborns of the Year
Only babies born during the previous twelve months take part. Families place them on mattresses along the procession route. When the drumming begins the Colacho runs forward and leaps over each group of infants. This action has been described in village records for centuries.
The practice continues under the direction of the Brotherhood of the Blessed Sacrament of Minerva which oversees the entire week of festivities. The jump takes place on Sunday and serves as the centerpiece of the local Corpus Christi procession. Each mattress rests along the known route that winds through the narrow streets of the village which lies within the municipality of Sason in Burgos province.
Historical Notes and Modern Scrutiny
The exact origin of the tradition is unknown. Written references confirm that it was already part of local observances in the early seventeenth century. Over time it became linked to beliefs that the jump could protect infants from illness and misfortune and that it related to ideas about original sin.
In the twenty first century attention grew when Pope Benedict called on Spanish clergy to distance themselves from the practice because the Church teaches that baptism addresses original sin. Despite this statement the event remains under the care of the local brotherhood and continues each year.
A Name Shared Across an Ocean
The word Colacho also appears in Costa Rica where it refers to a Christmas figure connected to Saint Nicholas. This figure known as El Colaco has no relation to the Spanish baby jumping tradition beyond the similarity in name.
In Castrillo de Murcia in northern Spain, men dressed as the Devil sprint through the streets and leap over rows of babies on mattresses.
The event takes place each year during Corpus Christi and has been recorded since 1620…🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/uBeF7t1SET
— Fascinating True Stories (@FascinatingTrue) November 20, 2025