Nativity scene
Italian name: Presepe La natura e i suoi frutti
A small artistic nativity in the Church of Suffragio in Ravenna, made with wasp and bee nests, gems, pods, berries, roots and seeds: the Nativity told through nature's fruits.
Dates are those announced by the organisers and may change: always check the official site of the event before you leave.
From the airport, the station or your hotel: a driver takes you to the entrance and picks you up at the end. Fixed price, book online in two minutes.
Book your transferService by Romagna Transfer. Their site opens.
Artistic nativity scene
Artistic nativity scene built with very humble materials: wasp and bee nests crafted with natural elements such as buds, pods, berries, roots, seeds, tubers and other plant materials. There are no industrial materials, only what the countryside and woods offer. The author is P. Parrini and the display is located inside the church.
The edition number is not published: it is held every year at Christmas.
Chiesa del Suffragio, via Serafino Ferruzzi 1
Via Serafino Ferruzzi, 1, 48121 Ravenna (RA)
Located in the historic centre of Ravenna, in the Chiesa del Suffragio (Santa Maria del Suffragio), just a few steps from Piazza del Popolo. The eighteenth-century church, with an octagonal plan, was designed by Francesco Fontana.
No car, or late in the evening after your visit: a driver takes you right to the nativity scene and back to your hotel.
Book your transferInformation gathered from public sources (parishes, local associations, town halls, local press) about the last edition: check dates and hours on the official site before you set off.
The nativity scene "La natura e i suoi frutti" is an artistic crib set up every year during the Christmas period in the Chiesa del Suffragio, at via Serafino Ferruzzi 1 in Ravenna. It is part of the rich calendar of nativity scenes that the city offers between December and early February, and is created by P. Parrini. It is a work made entirely with natural elements, designed to tell the Nativity through the materials that countryside and woods offer in the cold season.
What makes it unique is the technique with which it is built: the figures and settings are created from wasp and bee nests, used as basic forms and volumes, then enriched with buds, pods, berries, roots and seeds. There are no industrial materials or artificial colours, but only what nature produces spontaneously. The result is a nativity scene with strong symbolic value, in which the birth of Jesus is interpreted through the natural cycle of fruits and seeds, in a small space set up inside a baroque church in the centre of Ravenna.
Official sources indicate P. Parrini as the author, a name that most likely corresponds to Pia Parrini, an artist from Ravenna known for years for nativity scenes made with natural materials collected in the countryside and mountains, an activity she has been carrying out since 2004 in another church in the area, that of Savarna. However, there is no precise information documented online about when this specific nativity scene at the Chiesa del Suffragio was first created, nor about how it has changed from edition to edition: it is a display presented every Christmas, but its detailed history is not reported in publicly available documents.
Entering the church you will find a small nativity scene but rich in detail, where every element, from the stable to the figures, is composed of plant materials woven or assembled together. Wasp and bee nests give shape to rocks, caves and rustic architecture, whilst seeds, berries and roots become decorations, vegetation and small details of the landscape. The display is located inside a valuable religious building, the eighteenth-century octagonal church designed by Francesco Fontana, which is worth a visit also for its Istrian stone facade and interior stucco work.
The nativity scene can normally be visited from early December to the first days of February, coinciding with the Christmas nativity scene calendar of the Municipality of Ravenna. In the last documented edition, from 1 December 2025 to 2 February 2026, opening hours were every day from 8.30 to 16.30. Admission is free, as it is a visit to a church open for worship. For future editions it is advisable to check updated dates and times on the channels of the Municipality of Ravenna or the Diocese of Ravenna-Cervia, as they may vary from previous years.
The photos belong to their respective owners or to whoever holds the rights, and are published under the licence shown below each image.
