All our listed items are original Christian devotionals.Some may have been cleaned or polished before their arrival, by their lastcaretaker. Their use is for personal devotion.
This medal dated 1804 is a pilgrimage medal from theBasilica of Our lady of Guadalupe in Mexico. Its size is 1.5 inches, and it ismade of bronze. It is one of a handful of pilgrimage site medals, all from theprivate estate collection of Bertha, the founder of Church-Woman Antiques.
The story of the 1531 Guadalupe apparition of the VirginMother Mary is one of the most fascinating in all Catholic lore. According toaccounts, a poor Indian by the name of Juan Diego came across a vision of whathe described as a 'lady from heaven' while on a mountainside in NorthwestMexico City. According to Diego, this woman instructed him to create a templeat the site of this vision. In addition, she somehow imprinted her likenessinto his cactus-cloth. Although such cloth normally deteriorates rapidly overtime, Diego's cloth survives to this day, more than 470 years after theapparition, in defiance of scientific rationale. Today, the shrine of Our Ladyof Guadalupe is one of the most important Catholic churches in the Westernhemisphere. All told, more than 10 million people visit the Basilica of OurLady of Guadalupe every year. Pope John Paul II, for his part, made pilgrimagesto this Mexican sanctuary four times during his tenure as the leader of theCatholic Church. As with the so-called Miraculous Medal, which stirredreligious feeling in 19th century France, the Our Lady of Guadalupe medal hashelped to focus Catholic passions in America.
This medals dating can be confirmed on pages 2 & 3 of the book AN INTRODUCTION TO RELIGIOUS MEDALS, by Bob Forrest, andpublished by NUMISMATICA INTERNATIONAL in 2004.In addition this book haschapters (outlined in the table of contents), describing each of the categoriesof medals, their possible place of pilgrimage (acquisition), and origin of themint where they were made. We recommend that anyone serious about collectingmedals from this period, acquire a copy of this book.
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