The Silleteros: Medellín’s Living Cultural Heritage

Every August, the streets of Medellín fill with an extraordinary sight: hundreds of men, women, and children walking in procession through the city, each carrying an enormous arrangement of fresh flowers on their back in a wooden frame called a silleta. Some of these floral displays weigh over 70 kilograms. This is the Desfile de Silleteros — the centerpiece of the Feria de las Flores — and it represents one of the most distinctive cultural traditions in all of Latin America.

Origins: From Necessity to Art

The silletero tradition has its roots in practical necessity. Before roads connected the highland village of Santa Elena to Medellín below, campesino farmers would carry goods down the mountain on their backs using wooden silletas — the same basic frame still used today. Flowers, vegetables, charcoal, even people (the infirm and elderly were sometimes carried to town this way) all traveled on human backs down steep mountain paths.

The tradition was formalized as a public celebration in 1957, when the first official Desfile de Silleteros was held as part of Medellín’s flower festival. What began as a modest parade of a few dozen flower farmers has grown into a massive cultural event drawing hundreds of thousands of spectators.

A UNESCO-Recognized Tradition

The silletero tradition is serious cultural heritage. In 2003, Colombia’s Ministry of Culture declared it part of the nation’s cultural patrimony. In 2014, the Plan Especial de Salvaguardia de la Manifestación Cultural Silletera was approved for inclusion in Colombia’s Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage — a step toward UNESCO recognition.

Doctoral research from the Universidad Nacional de La Plata analyzes how the Desfile de Silleteros has become central to Medellín’s official memory and identity. The parade projects an image of Medellín as a city of flowers, spring, and warmth — a narrative that the city government has deliberately cultivated to replace its association with violence.

The Families of Santa Elena

The silletero tradition is deeply tied to the corregimiento of Santa Elena, a rural highland area about 17 kilometers east of Medellín’s center (reachable by bus or the Metrocable Line L to Parque Arví, which is nearby). Approximately 60 silletero families have passed down the craft across multiple generations.

Ethnographic research published by Colombia’s Ministry of Culture documents the silletero world along three axes: territory (the mountain landscape where flowers are grown), traditions (the knowledge passed from parent to child), and craft (the techniques of building a silleta). The research emphasizes that being a silletero is not just a job or a hobby — it is an identity.

A study from the Universidad de Antioquia examines how the parade has transformed since receiving its heritage designation. Paradoxically, formalization has brought both resources and tensions — more government support but also more external control over what was once an entirely community-driven practice.

The Feria de las Flores

The silletero parade is the highlight of the Feria de las Flores, Medellín’s biggest annual festival, typically held in the first two weeks of August. The broader festival includes:

• Desfile de Silleteros — The main parade, usually held on the final Sunday, with silleteros marching through the city center
• Cabalgata — A massive horseback parade through the streets
• Orquideorama — An orchid exhibition at the Jardín Botánico
• Tablados — Outdoor stages with live music, dance, and trova (improvised verse) in neighborhoods across the city
• Fonda Paisa — Traditional Antioquian fair with food, aguardiente, and regional music

The festival draws an estimated 500,000+ visitors to the city each year, making it one of the largest cultural events in Colombia.

Visiting the Silletero Tradition Year-Round

You don’t have to visit during August to experience silletero culture:

• Santa Elena is accessible year-round. Several silletero families operate small fincas (farms) where visitors can see flower cultivation and learn about the silleta-building process. The drive from El Poblado takes about 40 minutes.
• Parque Arví, reachable via the Metrocable, borders the Santa Elena area and has weekend markets where local products are sold.
• The Museo Casa de la Memoria in the city center occasionally hosts exhibitions about Medellín’s cultural traditions, including the silleteros.

Why It Matters

In a city that has worked hard to redefine its international image, the silleteros represent something that predates both the violence and the recovery narrative. They are a connection to the rural Antioquian identity that shaped Medellín long before it became a metropolis — a reminder that behind every flower-covered silleta is a family, a farm, a mountain, and generations of knowledge about how to carry beautiful things through difficult terrain.

References:

• “La Medellín de los silleteros: identidad, memorias e imágenes de ciudad.” Aletheia, UNLP, Argentina. Dialnet

• “¿Cuál Antioquia es la que pasa cuando el silletero pasa?” Universidad de Antioquia. UdeA

• “Silleteros un pasado que florece.” Ministerio de Cultura de Colombia. Mincultura

• Plan Especial de Salvaguardia de la Manifestación Cultural Silletera (2011–2014). Secretaría de Cultura de Medellín / Universidad de Antioquia. Mincultura

• Silleteros Research Repository. Patrimonio Medellín. patrimoniomedellin.gov.co