Madrid prepares for annual Transhumance Festival

Madrid is preparing for the annual Transhumance Festival, an event where hundreds of sheep and goats walk through the city's historic streets. The celebration, scheduled for Sunday, October 25, honors the ancient practice of seasonal livestock movement between mountain pastures and milder lowland regions.

This tradition is linked to the 'cañadas reales', vast livestock paths that have connected distant territories for centuries. The practice was historically regulated by the Honrado Concejo de la Mesta, an organization recognized in 1273. In 2023, UNESCO added transhumance to its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The modern festival, which began in 1994, aims to highlight the importance of extensive livestock farming, landscape conservation, and the preservation of rural traditions as vital components of cultural heritage.