Visit the Italian Feast of Saints Cosmas and Damian in Cambridge

Italian summer feasts aren't only for the North End.

Porter and Warren Streets in Cambridge are lined with lights and vendors for the Feast of Saints Cosmas and Damian. Courtesy of Cosmas and Damien Society

By Natalie Gale

1 minute to read

For three days each September, Cambridge hosts an Italian festival similar to celebrations in the North End in August. Warren and Porter Streets in East Cambridge, just east of Inman Square, are closed to foot traffic, decorated with lights and banners, and lined with street vendors for the weekend festivities.

The Feast of Saints Cosmas and Damian pays homage to saints Cosmas and Damian, “The Healing Saints,” with processions of the saints’ statues throughout the weekend. Brothers Cosmas and Damien were Arab doctors in the third century, and two of the earliest Christian martyrs.

The festival features a carnival at one end and a bandstand for live music and a temporary chapel at the other end, which is where the saint statues are housed for the weekend.

The feast begins on Friday evening with a candlelight procession, along with fireworks, carnival rides and games, music, and food. Saturday brings an all-day celebration of vendors, live music, carnival games, and another candlelight procession at night. On Sunday, activities start early with coffee and Italian pastries at the Porter Street chapel, before the procession to Saint Francis Church for mass. A traditional Italian dinner follows mass, which is free and open to all.

The “Grand Procession” begins Sunday at 1:30 p.m., where the saint statues are accompanied by a parade of bands and floats through the streets of East Cambridge and Somerville. The feast lasts into Sunday night, with food vendors and live entertainment til 10 p.m.

Find a full schedule of events on the festival website.