Santarém district, Portugal
Fatima
What is there today
The sanctuary occupies an esplanade twice the size of Saint Peter s square, crossed on the knees along a marble lane the pilgrims have polished over the years. In the Chapel of the Apparitions, tiny and standing at the centre, mass is celebrated every hour.
Why this image comes from here
Here in 1917 the devotion to the Immaculate Heart takes the form it has today, with the sword piercing the heart and the roses around it. The sword is not invented there: it comes from a sentence old Simeon said to Mary in the temple, which the icon turns into an image.
Pieces from this place
- Immaculate Heart of Mary
- The sword comes from a sentence spoken to her by old Simeon in the temple when she brought the child to present him. The devotion as it is known today takes shape in Portugal in 1917.