Tag: maria

The Icon of Montallegro Sanctuary.
The image of Our Lady at Montallegro Sanctuary was the detail I chose to photograph inside the sanctuary on the hills above Rapallo, one of the religious places I know best in the Tigullio area. The sacred image, protected and surrounded by angels, immediately conveys the special connection between this sanctuary and the religious history of Rapallo.
The photograph shows the original icon preserved inside the sanctuary. For visitors, it is much more than an artwork to look at: it represents the heart of the tradition connected with the very origins of this place of worship.
Montallegro Sanctuary stands above Rapallo, in Liguria, in the Metropolitan City of Genoa, Italy, overlooking the town and the Gulf of Tigullio from the surrounding hills. Its elevated position is one of the things that makes the sanctuary interesting from a photographic point of view as well. The relationship between the religious site, the mountains and the landscape becomes particularly clear once you reach it.
According to local tradition, the image of the Virgin Mary was found in 1557 by a farmer named Giovanni Chichizola, at the place associated with an apparition of the Virgin. The story says that the image was accompanied by a message indicating the desire for a place of worship to be built there. This tradition became the foundation of the devotion connected with Montallegro and remains an important part of the sanctuary’s identity.
It is difficult to look at the icon without thinking about the generations of people who have climbed these hills to pray, give thanks or simply spend a few quiet moments in front of the image. For me, this photograph came from paying attention to a detail that is not merely decorative, but deeply connected with the history of the sanctuary.
The original icon is still preserved inside Montallegro Sanctuary, and in the photograph it appears protected by angels. I found this detail particularly striking because it creates a very different kind of image from the photographs usually taken outside. There is no wide view of the Tigullio landscape here, only a close and intimate subject connected with faith and memory.
I wanted to capture this detail with my camera because, whenever I enter a religious building, it is often the smaller elements that stay with me the longest. You do not always need to photograph the whole building. A painting, statue or sacred image can sometimes communicate the reason why a place matters much more directly.
Montallegro is also somewhere I have reached several times by walking along the trails above Rapallo. I have already written on the blog about a hike that took me through the Tigullio area to the sanctuary and then down towards Rapallo. Looking at this photograph again brings back those walks and the feeling of finally reaching the sanctuary after the climb.
The story of the icon is one of the details that makes Montallegro particularly recognizable in this part of Liguria. Regardless of personal beliefs, it is interesting to see how a tradition dating back to the sixteenth century has continued to play an important role in the local memory.
The photograph itself, however, remains primarily a personal memory of a visit. I was not trying to create a purely documentary image of the icon. I wanted to preserve the feeling of standing in front of an object that has represented the devotion surrounding this sanctuary for centuries.
That is also why I enjoy photographing places I already know. Every visit can reveal something different, perhaps a detail that I only noticed briefly the previous time. On this occasion, it was the original icon, surrounded and protected by the angels, that caught my attention.
If you are visiting Montallegro Sanctuary, this is certainly one of the details worth taking a moment to look at inside the church. It gives a more personal connection to the story behind the sanctuary than the wider landscape alone can provide.

Have you ever stopped to look closely at the original icon inside Montallegro Sanctuary? Add a comment or go to the bottom of the site to read what other visitors have written.

Foto scattata con macchina Canon EOS M100 e lente Tamron 16-300.

Clicca qui per vedere tutte le foto che ho scattato al Santuario:

Ecco dove si trova il Santuario:

Considerato tra i principali santuari mariani del territorio metropolitano genovese e della Liguria, fu edificato dalla popolazione rapallese tra il 1557 e il 1558, assieme all’annesso ricovero per pellegrini, dopo l’apparizione della Vergine Maria il 2 luglio 1557 al contadino Giovanni Chichizola. L’attuale facciata marmorea è risalente al rifacimento compiuto dall’architetto milanese Luigi Rovelli nel corso del 1896, ed inaugurata con solenne cerimonia il 21 giugno di quell’anno.
Continua e approfondisci su Wikipedia