The Icon Of The Virgin Of The Rosary
The Icon of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary of Pompeii (120 cm high and 100 cm large) presents the image of Our Lady on the throne holding Jesus in her arms; at her feet, Saint Dominic and Saint Catherine of Siena. The Virgin is giving the rosary in her right hand to Saint Catherine, while Jesus, seated on her right leg, is giving it to Saint Dominic.
In this picture one can see three great spaces. The space on high, where the humble but solemn figure of Mary on the throne invites the Church to go towards the Mystery of the Trinity. The space below represents the Church, the mystical body, the family who has in Jesus her Head, in the Spirit her bond, in Mary both her eminent member and her Mother. The lateral space, represented by the arches, leads to the world, to the history, towards which the Church is in debt to be a “sacrament”, offering the service of announcing the Gospel in order to build a worthy city of man. The way which joins these spaces is the Rosary, the praying synthesis of the scripture, placed almost as a foundation at the feet of the throne, and given by the Son and by the Mother as a way of meditation and assimilation of the Mystery.
This icon was given to Bartolo Longo by Sister Maria Concetta De Litala of the Convent of the Rosariello of Porta Medina in Naples. The religious women had had it for safe-keeping by Father Alberto Radente, a friend and confessor of our Blessed. To carry the painting to Pompeii, Longo entrusted it to the Pompeiian countryman Angelo Tortora who, after having enveloped it in a sheet, placed it on his cart full of manure.
It was the 13th of November of 1875, the day of birth of the New Pompeii. This day is remembered every year with the Descent of the Picture which, all day long, is exposed on the main altar for the veneration of the faithful so that they can kiss Our Lady and entrust Her all their anxieties and hopes. It is extraordinary to see how, since the first hours of the morning, thousands and thousands of people of all ages line up and wait patiently, even for hours, their turn to approach the dear Image of the Virgin.
When arrived at Pompeii, the Picture of the Virgin needed a restoration, which was made by the landscape painter Guglielmo Galella. On February 13th, it was exposed for the veneration of the faithful. That same day, in Naples, the first miracle happened by the intercession of Our Lady of Pompeii: the twelve-year-old Clorinda Lucarelli, which was considered incurable by doctors, was perfectly cured by terrible epileptic convulsions. Later, Bartolo Longo gave the Icon to the Neapolitan painter Federico Maldarelli for a further restoration, asking him to substitute the original Saint Rose with the Dominican Saint Catherine of Siena.
In 1965, at the Pontifical Institute of the Benedictine Olivetan Fathers of Rome, a scientific restoration was realised, during which, under the colours put one on top of the other in the course of the restorations wanted by the Blessed Bartolo Longo, the original colours of the Icon were discovered revealing the hand of a skilful artist of the school of the famous Italian painter Luca Giordano (XVII century). In the same year, on April 23rd, the image was crowned by Pope Paul VI in the Basilica of Saint Peter. In the year 2000, for the 125th anniversary of its arrival from Naples to Pompeii, the Picture remained for five days in the Cathedral of Naples where it was venerated by thousands of faithful.
The return journey was made on foot, following the same route of 1875, with several stops in the towns of the Neapolitan province. Al, day long hundreds of thousands of people crowed the roads, walking for thirty kilometres which the distance from Naples to Pompeii. When, in the heart of the night, the Picture arrived in Pompeii, it was welcomed by a jubilant city.
On October 16th, 2002, the Picture came back to Saint Peter on the explicit request of Pope John Paul II who, just next to the “beautiful image venerated at Pompeii”, signed the Apostolic Letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae, by which he introduced the new five Mysteries of Light and proclaimed the Year of the Rosary.
Also during his second pilgrimage to Pompeii, on October 7th 2003, Pope Wojtila, was welcomed on platform placed before the Basilica by the Icon of the Virgin of Pompeii he loved so much.
In this picture one can see three great spaces. The space on high, where the humble but solemn figure of Mary on the throne invites the Church to go towards the Mystery of the Trinity. The space below represents the Church, the mystical body, the family who has in Jesus her Head, in the Spirit her bond, in Mary both her eminent member and her Mother. The lateral space, represented by the arches, leads to the world, to the history, towards which the Church is in debt to be a “sacrament”, offering the service of announcing the Gospel in order to build a worthy city of man. The way which joins these spaces is the Rosary, the praying synthesis of the scripture, placed almost as a foundation at the feet of the throne, and given by the Son and by the Mother as a way of meditation and assimilation of the Mystery.
This icon was given to Bartolo Longo by Sister Maria Concetta De Litala of the Convent of the Rosariello of Porta Medina in Naples. The religious women had had it for safe-keeping by Father Alberto Radente, a friend and confessor of our Blessed. To carry the painting to Pompeii, Longo entrusted it to the Pompeiian countryman Angelo Tortora who, after having enveloped it in a sheet, placed it on his cart full of manure.
It was the 13th of November of 1875, the day of birth of the New Pompeii. This day is remembered every year with the Descent of the Picture which, all day long, is exposed on the main altar for the veneration of the faithful so that they can kiss Our Lady and entrust Her all their anxieties and hopes. It is extraordinary to see how, since the first hours of the morning, thousands and thousands of people of all ages line up and wait patiently, even for hours, their turn to approach the dear Image of the Virgin.
When arrived at Pompeii, the Picture of the Virgin needed a restoration, which was made by the landscape painter Guglielmo Galella. On February 13th, it was exposed for the veneration of the faithful. That same day, in Naples, the first miracle happened by the intercession of Our Lady of Pompeii: the twelve-year-old Clorinda Lucarelli, which was considered incurable by doctors, was perfectly cured by terrible epileptic convulsions. Later, Bartolo Longo gave the Icon to the Neapolitan painter Federico Maldarelli for a further restoration, asking him to substitute the original Saint Rose with the Dominican Saint Catherine of Siena.
In 1965, at the Pontifical Institute of the Benedictine Olivetan Fathers of Rome, a scientific restoration was realised, during which, under the colours put one on top of the other in the course of the restorations wanted by the Blessed Bartolo Longo, the original colours of the Icon were discovered revealing the hand of a skilful artist of the school of the famous Italian painter Luca Giordano (XVII century). In the same year, on April 23rd, the image was crowned by Pope Paul VI in the Basilica of Saint Peter. In the year 2000, for the 125th anniversary of its arrival from Naples to Pompeii, the Picture remained for five days in the Cathedral of Naples where it was venerated by thousands of faithful.
The return journey was made on foot, following the same route of 1875, with several stops in the towns of the Neapolitan province. Al, day long hundreds of thousands of people crowed the roads, walking for thirty kilometres which the distance from Naples to Pompeii. When, in the heart of the night, the Picture arrived in Pompeii, it was welcomed by a jubilant city.
On October 16th, 2002, the Picture came back to Saint Peter on the explicit request of Pope John Paul II who, just next to the “beautiful image venerated at Pompeii”, signed the Apostolic Letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae, by which he introduced the new five Mysteries of Light and proclaimed the Year of the Rosary.
Also during his second pilgrimage to Pompeii, on October 7th 2003, Pope Wojtila, was welcomed on platform placed before the Basilica by the Icon of the Virgin of Pompeii he loved so much.