According to UNESCO, the Limousin ostensions are “grandiose ceremonies and processions organized every 7 years for the exposition and veneration of relics of Catholic saints preserved in the churches of the Limousin.
Largely supported by local towns and villages, the festivities attract large numbers of people who gather to see the reliquaries paraded through the towns accompanied by flags, banners, decorations and costumed historical figures.
The septennial ostensions belong to the entire population of Limousin, and both Christian and non-Christian residents consider themselves to be the holders of the tradition. The brotherhoods and committees are actively involved in passing on (both orally and in writing) the knowledge, skills and objects associated with this practice.
The 19 sites concerned by this registration are located in a territory that is historically linked to the Limousin, today extending over four French departments: Haute-Vienne, Creuse, Charente and Vienne.
In 2009, ostensions took place in Haute-Vienne, Creuse, Charente and Charroux in Vienne.
