A horse stands next to bonfires during the ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot, the patron saint of animals, in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
SAN BARTOLOME DE PINARES, Spain (AP) - Horses burst through the soaring flames of night-time bonfires in a dramatic annual festival in this small Spanish town.
Riders urge their mounts toward the wood fires, lit in the cobbled street, and say the smoke that envelops them purifies and protects the horses during the following year.
The bonfires are called "luminarias," and the Las Luminarias festival is believed to be centuries-old. Some say it is related to ancient Catholic traditions of fighting disease through cleansing by smoke.
It takes place every Jan. 16 on the eve of the annual remembrance of St. Anthony the Abbot, the patron saint of animals.
The celebrations also include plenty of music and wine and attract crowds to this town about 100 kilometers (60 miles) northwest of Madrid. The village is home to around 600 mostly elderly people, though many former residents who left to find work come back for the fiesta.
The horses were once kept for working on local farms, but nowadays are expensive and are prized possessions. They clop down the dark, cobbled streets, past stone houses, before facing up to the crackling flames in front of a crowd of cheering people.
Animal rights groups have complained about the practice, but locals say the horses don't suffer.
A man rides a horse through a bonfire as part of a ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot, the patron saint of animals, in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
A man rides a horse through a bonfire as part of a ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot, the patron saint of animals, in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Horses burst through the soaring flames of night-time bonfires in a dramatic annual festival in this small Spanish town. The bonfires are called "luminarias," and the Las Luminarias festival is believed to be centuries-old. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
A man rides a horse through a bonfire as part of a ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. On the eve of Saint Anthony's Day, dozens ride their horses through the narrow cobblestone streets of the small village of San Bartolome during the "Luminarias," a tradition that dates back 500 years and is meant to purify the animals with the smoke of the bonfires and protect them for the year to come. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
Riders and horses stand by bonfires prior the ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot, the patron saint of animals, in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. On the eve of Saint Anthony's Day, dozens ride their horses through the narrow cobblestone streets of the small village of San Bartolome during the "Luminarias," a tradition that dates back 500 years and is meant to purify the animals with the smoke of the bonfires and protect them for the year to come. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
A man drinks wine from a wineskin next to bonfires during the ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. On the eve of Saint Anthony's Day, dozens ride their horses through the narrow cobblestone streets of the small village of San Bartolome during the "Luminarias," a tradition that dates back 500 years and is meant to purify the animals with the smoke of the bonfires and protect them for the year to come. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
A woman braids the hair of a horse before the ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot, the patron saint of animals, in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Horses burst through the soaring flames of night-time bonfires in a dramatic annual festival in this small Spanish town. The bonfires are called "luminarias," and the Las Luminarias festival is believed to be centuries-old. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
A woman braids the hair of a horse before the ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot, the patron saint of animals, in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Horses burst through the soaring flames of night-time bonfires in a dramatic annual festival in this small Spanish town. The bonfires are called "luminarias," and the Las Luminarias festival is believed to be centuries-old. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
A horse stands by a tree before the ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. On the eve of Saint Anthony's Day, dozens ride their horses through the narrow cobblestone streets of the small village of San Bartolome during the "Luminarias," a tradition that dates back 500 years and is meant to purify the animals with the smoke of the bonfires and protect them for the year to come. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press
A horse stands inside a countryside enclosure before the ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot, the patron saint of animals, in San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Horses burst through the soaring flames of night-time bonfires in a dramatic annual festival in this small Spanish town. The bonfires are called "luminarias," and the Las Luminarias festival is believed to be centuries-old. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
The Associated Press