Holy Week is one of the biggest holiday periods in Spain but while many people flock to the beaches, many opt to see the colorful, daily religious processions that take place in towns and cities across the country. Several of the processions, notably those in southern Seville and northeastern Zaragoza, have become major tourist attractions.

In the parades, members of Catholic neighborhood religious groups known as fraternities carry, or file behind, large, ornately decorated floats of religious effigies depicting scenes from the biblical story of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection.

Many of the participants don penitential robes including conical shaped hats with face-covering hoods, as well as cloaks. Women often dress in black with elaborate hair combs as if in mourning.

The processions, take place both night and day, and are accompanied by brass and drum bands. Others are held in silence broken only by a wailing song of lament.

See more images from Holy Week

Text from the AP news story, AP PHOTOS: Colorful parades tell Passion of Christ in Spain.

Spotlight is the blog of AP Images, the world’s largest collection of historical and contemporary photos. AP Images provides instant access to AP’s iconic photos and adds new content every minute of every day from every corner of the world, making it an essential source of photos and graphics for professional image buyers and commercial customers.  Whether your needs are for editorial, commercial, or personal use, AP Images has the content and the expert sales team to fulfill your image requirements. Visit apimages.com to learn more.

Written content on this site is not created by the editorial department of AP, unless otherwise noted. 

AP Images on Twitter | AP Images on Facebook | AP Images on Google+