Re, a small town with scattered hamlets located at 700.0 meters above sea level nestled in the beautiful Vigezzo Valley in the province of Verbania, - Cusio - Ossola, a territory of Piedmont of infinite beauty, the last municipality in the valley just 7.0 kilometers from the Swiss border with its village of Ponte Ribellasca which forms the border between Italy and the Helvetic Republic.
Furrowed by the Melezzo stream between suggestive mountains and picturesque hills overlooking dense wooded areas where pines, beeches and rich in mushrooms predominate, Re is dominated by Mount Gridone and lies in a natural bottleneck of the valley that turns into a sort of gorge at this geographical point.
Famous center for the presence of the famous Sanctuary of the Madonna del Sangue, iconic marian pilgrimage site remembering the miraculous event dating back to 1494 when a shed of blood took place on a frescoed image depicting a Madonna del Latte.
Once you arrive at your destination, you can linger in front of the imposing single-nave Basilica developed in neo-Byzantine architectural style with Renaissance influences, a work commissioned in 1894 by the then Bishop of Novara to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the miracle.
The adjacent Sanctuary dedicated to the Madonna del Sangue was a work completed after works begun in 1922 by the Bolognese architect Edoardo Collamarini who made use of the great works carried out by stonemasons who built this majestic stone building inaugurated on August 5, 1958 and elevated to Minor Basilica by Pope Pius XII.
The history of this place is very interesting and suggestive, it all began in 1494 where on a small church not far from today's agglomeration on one of its facades there was a fresco depicting a Madonna del Latte with Child.
A young local named Giovanni was playing with friends near him in Piodella, probably angry for the defeat he threw a stone towards the religious building hitting the frescoed face of the Madonna and after the fact assailed by remorse he ran home.
The following day a local devotee touching the sacred image saw blood loss coming from the forehead of the Virgin Mary, a miracle that lasted for about twenty days, the locals decided to collect the liquid in pieces of cloth that the local parish priest then put in a chalice.
Since then, strong flows of pilgrimages began to see this miraculous image and many people who had been ill or with serious health problems had been cured for years, effects that created great uproar, miracles attested and compiled in historical archives by the Podestà.
Similar cases occurred in the same century in the Romagna provincial capital of Forlì where a venerated image of a Madonna pierced by a knife began to lose blood, giving rise to the miracle of the Wounded Madonna which is now honored and venerated in the city Cathedral of Santa Croce.
Another important note concerns the chimney sweeps of Re who moved to the great metropolis of Milan for work, proud and devoted to the Madonna del Sangue of their hometown in ancient times gathered to remember the event in a Milanese church located in Via Magolfa in the well-known area of the Navigli.
In front of that fresco, which was later entitled as Our Lady of the Blood, a small altar was built, then an eighteenth-century church built between 1606 and 1628 and later, in contemporary times, a sanctuary of considerable size, visible today.
Visiting the interior behind the altar there is a tabernacle inaugurated on August 5, 1928 which houses a crystal ampoule enclosed in a glass chalice closed by a metal lid and for safety hermetically sealed in four points containing the pieces of cloth soaked in that miraculous blood.
The four seals correspond to the periodic reconnaissance of the relic carried out by the Bishops of the Diocese of Novara, that is, the first occurred in 1628 attributed by Bishop Volpi, the second carried out by Bishop Eula in the nineteenth century, the third by the hand of the Franciscan Bishop Ossola dating back to 1948 and a fourth in 1962 with Archbishop Gramigni as the protagonist .
Near the Sanctuary in the late nineteenth century the Pilgrim's House was built where there is also the Diocesan Museum which honors with a collection of votive objects left for the veneration of the Madonna del Sangue containing the votive offerings of pilgrims, embroidery, photographs, painted tablets, all tributes related to four fundamental aspects namely violence, natural disasters, accident and illness.
The various pieces are located in a space located under the image of the Virgin Mary with a review of the events and episodes that took place collected in the lower section, some told through photos others in writing.
There are also paintings, some of which were commissioned from professional painters and others made by amateur painting enthusiasts.
The feast of Our Lady of the Blood is celebrated annually from April 29th to May 1st with a votive pilgrimage on foot that starts from the town of Domodossola and ends in Re in front of the Sanctuary, a place that has been included in itineraries of relevance of Marian faith and in the routes of CoEur linked to religious paths in Europe.
Time for your advice among the first courses of your choice Rustida Pasta with Potatoes or Risotto with Porcini Mushrooms, among the second courses between Lamb Chops with Spinach Au Gratin in Bettelmatt or Grilled Chicken Breast with Onion and Bacon and Mixed Salad.
Visiting Re is a wonderful day of tourism that combines art, history, faith, the wonderful landscapes of the Vigezzo Valley, a tourist experience that will surely fully delight you.
Link : http://www.vallevigezzo.eu/re/
Where to Stay | Recommended Accommodation in the area
La Terrazza
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Thanks a lot to read and note.