Description of the attraction
Madonna di San Luca is a Catholic church located on the Colle della Guardia near the historic center of Bologna. The image of the Virgin Mary and Child, painted by Saint Luke, kept here, has been the object of pilgrimage for thousands of believers from all over Italy for about a thousand years. You can get to the temple through the covered gallery, which begins at the city gates of Saragozza, or along the bypass road.
An ancient legend says that once a Greek hermit, who was making a pilgrimage to Constantinople, received an icon depicting the Virgin Mary from local monks and ordered to take it to Guard Hill. The hermit went to Rome in search of the named hill, but there he was informed that such a mountain is located in the vicinity of Bologna. So the icon ended up in the capital of Emilia Romagna - it happened in the 12th century. At the same time, in 1194, the first church was laid on Guard Hill.
In 1433, the icon showed the people the first miracle - during a solemn procession with the image of the Virgin Mary, the rain suddenly stopped, flooding Bologna for several days and threatening to cause irreparable damage to the city. At the end of the 15th century, the sanctuary in which the icon was kept was completely restored, and in 1874 it received the status of a national monument.
The current building of the temple was completed in 1765 in the Baroque style by the architect Carlo Francesco Dotti, and its dome, facade and outer side stands were completed later in 1774. In 1815, new marble altars were erected, and already in the 20th century, the dome was decorated. Inside the temple, you can see works by Donato Creti, Guido Reni, Giuseppe Mazza, Vittorio Bigari and Guercino.
An integral part of the sanctuary is the portico - a covered gallery paved with cobblestones in 1589. 15 chapels were built along it in the 17th century. The portico itself consists of 666 arches and is considered the longest in the world - it stretches from the gate of Saragozza to the temple for 3.7 km. The number of arches is not accidental - the number 666, apparently, symbolizes the devil crushed by the foot of the Virgin. Every year, a procession of believers passes along this road, heading from the Church of St. Petronius to the sanctuary of Madonna di San Luca.
