The Bodo em Honra do Mártir São Sebastião da Lardosa, a community celebration in the municipality of Castelo Branco, has entered public consultation for proposed inclusion in Portugal’s Inventário Nacional do Património Cultural Imaterial.
People interested in the proposal can submit comments until 18 November 2026, according to Património Cultural, I.P.’s official consultation page.
The formal notice was published in Diário da República on 7 October. The heritage authority specifies a consultation period of 30 working days, providing an opportunity to examine the application and contribute before a final decision.
How to take part
The application documents are available through the 2026 section of Património Cultural, I.P.’s public consultation page.
According to the official notice, observations can be emailed to inpci@patrimoniocultural.gov.pt. Written submissions can also be sent by registered post to the Divisão de Cadastro, Inventário e Classificação, Palácio Nacional da Ajuda, Ala Norte, 1349-021 Lisboa.
The notice gives the authority 120 days after the consultation closes to decide on the application.
A celebration built around sharing
The inventory dossier describes the Bodo as an annual celebration held on the Saturday closest to 19 January. Its central feature is the preparation, blessing and sharing of coscoréis, braided fried pastries made by members of the community.
The festivities include a procession from the Casa do Povo to the Capela de São Sebastião, with trays of coscoréis carried on participants’ heads. After an outdoor Mass, the pastries are blessed and distributed.
The tradition brings together residents, people who have moved away and their descendants. The dossier also describes the participation of newcomers, making the celebration a point of connection across generations and backgrounds.
Oral tradition links its origins to thanksgiving to São Sebastião for protecting the village from locust infestations.
The proposed inventory entry concerns this living community practice. Beira Baixa TV, reporting Lusa’s interview with council president Leopoldo Rodrigues, says the municipality’s aim is to help preserve the tradition. The consultation is the next formal step towards a decision on national recognition.