Sign language
The story translated into Italian Sign Language by an interpreter.
Cripta del Santuario Montevergine
Palmariggi
Listen, watch, mark
The Sanctuary of Montevergine, located on a hill near Palmariggi, has its origins in 1595, the year when the Madonna appeared to a shepherd boy while he was searching for his lost little knife among the brambles on Mount Giove. Attracted by a fragrance and a mysterious light, the boy saw a Lady who returned the knife to him and invited him to tell the community about the event.
The parish priest and the inhabitants, having gone to the indicated place, cleared the area of brambles and discovered the entrance to a Byzantine crypt with an altar and a fresco of the Madonna with Child. Following the apparition, a chapel was built, initially called Monte della Vergine, later Montevergine. After the collapse of the small church, in 1703, reconstruction work began, completed in 1707, with the dedication to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.
The current church, made of Lecce stone, has a single rectangular nave and stands directly above the original crypt, where the Byzantine fresco is still preserved. Inside, there is a Baroque main altar, a painting of the Madonna delle Grazie, and a staircase of 20 steps leading to the underground crypt. The eighteenth-century church does not replace the crypt but incorporates it; moreover, the fresco has remained in its original place, without being moved or relocated. This makes Montevergine a rare case, a modern Sanctuary built exactly above a medieval place of worship, still intact.
In 1834, a papier-mâché statue of the Madonna with Child was added. The church was restored in 1995.
In front of the church stands an obelisk with a 5-meter statue of the Madonna; the work was completely reassembled in 2000 (putting together 452 pieces) after being destroyed by lightning. The last restorations of the temple date back to 1995.
The parish priest and the inhabitants, having gone to the indicated place, cleared the area of brambles and discovered the entrance to a Byzantine crypt with an altar and a fresco of the Madonna with Child. Following the apparition, a chapel was built, initially called Monte della Vergine, later Montevergine. After the collapse of the small church, in 1703, reconstruction work began, completed in 1707, with the dedication to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.
The current church, made of Lecce stone, has a single rectangular nave and stands directly above the original crypt, where the Byzantine fresco is still preserved. Inside, there is a Baroque main altar, a painting of the Madonna delle Grazie, and a staircase of 20 steps leading to the underground crypt. The eighteenth-century church does not replace the crypt but incorporates it; moreover, the fresco has remained in its original place, without being moved or relocated. This makes Montevergine a rare case, a modern Sanctuary built exactly above a medieval place of worship, still intact.
In 1834, a papier-mâché statue of the Madonna with Child was added. The church was restored in 1995.
In front of the church stands an obelisk with a 5-meter statue of the Madonna; the work was completely reassembled in 2000 (putting together 452 pieces) after being destroyed by lightning. The last restorations of the temple date back to 1995.