San Giovanni (St. John), patron saint of Torino since 602, is celebrated during the summer solstice, the shortest night of the year that in the pagan world symbolized a rite of passage that carried Earth from the moon to the solar dominance. At sunset, the inhabitants of the city attended rites and followed magical beliefs like burning old herbs in the bonfire and gathering new ones to read the future, buying garlic to have a lucky year, picking up a fern branch at midnight and storing it at home to receive more money.
Today this superstition and somewhat its magical side remains, with the tradition of the fall of the Taurus at the top of the bonfire. At the center of the " Farò" (Bonfire), in fact the silhouette of a Taurus is hoisted, which depending on the direction in which it falls will bring luck or misfortune to the city during the following year. Legend has it that if the Taurus silhouette falls towards Porta Nuova, the new year will be auspicious for the city but if it falls in the opposite direction it will be an unlucky year for Torino.
