A fascinating legend to learn about on your holiday to Tuscany could be the one that originated in the hills of the Amiata in the south of the region. There is a fine selection of luxury villas with swimming pool available all across the south Tuscany area for visitors to spend a few days exploring the area and learning about the famous image of the Virgin Mary.
One version of the legend tells the story of a shepherd who herded his sheep in the Amiata hills and one day found a large fallen branch that seemed to be in the shape of a parent holding their child. He felt inspired to carve a statue of the Virgin Mary and the baby Jesus as he watched over his sheep during the long days and nights.
But as time passed, he became discontented with how it looked and eventually threw it into the fire in annoyance. You can imagine his shock when he heard a female voice crying from the fire, ‘Please don’t burn me, please!’ He hurriedly quenched the fire and ran towards the nearest village to tell them what had happened in the belief that Mary had spoken to him and wanted the carving to be preserved.
One version of the legend tells the story of a shepherd who herded his sheep in the Amiata hills and one day found a large fallen branch that seemed to be in the shape of a parent holding their child. He felt inspired to carve a statue of the Virgin Mary and the baby Jesus as he watched over his sheep during the long days and nights.
But as time passed, he became discontented with how it looked and eventually threw it into the fire in annoyance. You can imagine his shock when he heard a female voice crying from the fire, ‘Please don’t burn me, please!’ He hurriedly quenched the fire and ran towards the nearest village to tell them what had happened in the belief that Mary had spoken to him and wanted the carving to be preserved.
An alternate tale of this legend describes a shepherd struggling to find shelter during a ferocious storm and foolishly seeks shelter under a tree as the thunder rolled and the lightning flashed. Suddenly, lightning struck the tree and it instantly fell to the ground.
Miraculously the shepherd was unharmed and when the storm had passed he got up and walked around the tree to assess the damage. Every branch but one had been destroyed and it appeared to have an image of the Virgin and Child sculpted onto it! He brought this to the nearest village for others to witness and confirm what he believed he saw.
Miraculously the shepherd was unharmed and when the storm had passed he got up and walked around the tree to assess the damage. Every branch but one had been destroyed and it appeared to have an image of the Virgin and Child sculpted onto it! He brought this to the nearest village for others to witness and confirm what he believed he saw.
Regardless of how the image was created, the towns and the villages of the area petitioned ferociously to bring the wooden piece back to their parishes for safekeeping. Eventually the village of Montelaterone won possession and kept it in their church. But many stories told of the Madonna’s dislike of her new home and every night, to the villager’s astonishment, the statue would mysteriously disappear to be found at the place where it was first discovered the following morning. After several attempts of bringing it back, the people resigned to let Mary stay where she pleased and so they built the Santa Maria parish church in Lamulas on the spot where it kept returning. Tourists would surely be interested to see this sculpture and can do so whenever they wish and see if it is indeed a true image of the Virgin Mary and her baby Jesus.
This legend is just one of several tales passed down through Tuscan history that are detailed in related articles and are well worth reading for inspiration on the array of wonderful things you can do and see in Tuscany!
Photo credits
picture 1: FaleBot / CC BY-SA;
picture 2: Pseudolo79 / CC BY-SA
This legend is just one of several tales passed down through Tuscan history that are detailed in related articles and are well worth reading for inspiration on the array of wonderful things you can do and see in Tuscany!
Photo credits
picture 1: FaleBot / CC BY-SA;
picture 2: Pseudolo79 / CC BY-SA
