The church of Sant’Efisio, located at no more than a couple of meters from the sea, undoubtedly is the place which renders more than any other the faith, history, and traditions of the area of Pula. An atmosphere of celebration but also of devotion revive on the second and third of May of each year, when the statue of the hallowed warrior arrives, in the company of the faithful and at the end of a solemn (and very lengthy) procession dedicated to him, starting from Cagliari. At the exact spot where the church rises, tradition has it that in the year of 303 CE, the young soldier Efisio, of Islamic faith and enrolled by the Romans to repress the Christian communities, was subsequently beheaded by the same Romans because he had converted and fought them in turn in Sardinia. The current building in Romanesque style took shape in the 11th century at the original location of paleo-Christian worship, and until 1098 harbored the remains of the martyr.
Pula, church of Sant’Efisio. Photo by Alessandro Addis.
