santuario, diocesano, Maria Santissima di Manipuglia

A sanctuary dedicated to the Madonna of Manipuglia stands in the woods of Crucoli, two kilometres from the hamlet of Torretta. The place-name ‘Manipuglia’ is a local evolution of ‘Marepuglia’, though the church itself was formally elevated to a diocesan sanctuary in the mid-twentieth century. Tradition tells of a gravely ill young woman from Valleverde who, lost in the dense forest of Manipuglia after dark, fell asleep and was visited by an apparition of the Virgin Mary. Each year, the principal feast is held on the third Sunday of May, preceded by nine days of prayer. On the first of May, the image of the Madonna is lowered from a side chapel in the parish church of Saints Peter and Paul in Crucoli and carried by tractor or ox-drawn cart to the sanctuary. The following Monday, she is returned in procession to the sound of bagpipes and folk songs. The site draws many pilgrims, especially lorry drivers and other motorists.

Description via source. Coordinates and heritage data from the Atika atlas.