On December 6th in Belmonte Castello there's Feast of St. Nicholas of Bari, one of the most loved saints by the Catholic and Orthodox churches.
Nicola had been bishop of Myra and in 1087 the relics were brought to Bari and since then he has become the patron saint of the city.
St. Nicholas inspired the figure of Santa Claus thanks to an episode of his life in which he had shown extreme generosity.
A noble family had fallen into poverty and the father did not have the funds to buy the dowry to his daughters.
Thus St. Nicholas made three golden balls enter the house window with which to prepare the dowry.
This is why in the iconography Saint Nicholas is often represented by three balls.
In many northern European countries, the day of St. Nicholas was the day when presents were given to children.
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