santuario, mariano, diocesano, Santuario Maria Santissima delle Grazie

The Santuario Maria Santissima delle Grazie stands in a landscape shaped by devotion and geology. Its origins reach back to December 1649, when a small temple was built here for the Madonna delle Grazie, prompted by a local young man, Domenico Teotino, who adopted a hermit’s rough habit and prepared his neighbours for the cult. In 1829, a severe landslide threatened the site, but miraculously spared the statue of the Virgin and Child surrounded by angels, a work by the Roman sculptor Bernardo Valentini from 1760. A new sanctuary was inaugurated in 1904. In 2002, it was formally recognised as a diocesan Marian sanctuary. The main feast is held on the third Sunday of September, with an additional celebration on 16 July. The church is a Baroque-era place of pilgrimage, its history a quiet record of survival, faith, and institutional care.

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