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WALKING TOURS OF ROME

Miracle of the Madonna of the Snow

13/8/2019

 
Map
Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome
Santa Maria Maggiore

The majestic facade of the church of Santa Maria Maggiore was designed by the Florentine architect Ferdinando Fuga (1699-1782) and built between 1741 and 1750. It masks a much older facade, which retains its medieval mosaics. 

The mosaics (1294-1308), which decorate the back wall of what is now the Benediction Loggia, are the work of Filippo Rusuti, a pupil of Jacopo Torriti, the creator of the mosaics in the apse of the church. 


Rusuti's mosaics illustrate an ancient legend relating to the foundation of Santa Maria Maggiore. On the night of August 4th, 352, the Virgin Mary appeared to Pope Liberius (r. 352-366) and John, a patrician of Rome. She told them that in the morning they would find a patch of snow covering the spot where they were to build a church. The prediction was fulfilled and the new church was called Santa Maria della Neve (St Mary of the Snow). 

The two allegorical statues above the central opening are Chastity (Giovanni Battista Maini) and Humility (Pietro Bracci). The coat of arms belongs to Pope Benedict XIV (r. 1740-58 ). A statue of the Virgin and Child crowns the facade. 

Statue of the Virgin and Child crowns the facade of Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome
A statue of the Virgin and Child crowns the facade
Benediction loggia, Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome
Benediction loggia
Allegorical Statues of Chastity and Humility, facade of Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome
Allegorical Statues of Chastity and Humility
Mosaics by Filippo Rusuti, Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome
Mosaics by Filippo Rusuti
Mosaic of Christ by Filippo Rusuti, Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome
Mosaic of Christ and four angels by Filippo Rusuti
Mosaic of Christ by Filippo Rusuti, Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome
Mosaic of Christ by Filippo Rusuti

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    Walking Tours For Discerning Travellers

    My name is David Lown and I am an art historian from Cambridge, England. Since 2001 I have lived in Italy, where I run private and
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  • Home
  • Private Tours
  • Contact
  • Rome
  • St Peter's Basilica
    • Altars >
      • Altar of St Joseph
      • Altar of St Gregory the Great
      • Altar of the Madonna of Succour
      • Altar of St Sebastian
      • Altar of the Lie
      • Altar of the Presentation of the Virgin
      • Altar of St Jerome
      • Altar of the Transfiguration
      • Altar of Pope Leo the Great
    • Monuments >
      • Countess Matilda of Canossa
      • Maria Clementina Sobieska
      • Queen Christina of Sweden
      • Pope Innocent VIII
      • Pope Paul III
      • Pope Gregory XIII
      • Pope Gregory XIV
      • Pope Leo XI
      • Pope Urban VIII
      • Pope Alexander VII
      • Pope Clement X
      • Pope Innocent XI
      • Pope Alexander VIII
      • Pope Innocent XII
      • Pope Benedict XIV
      • Pope Clement XIII
      • Pope Pius VII
      • Pope Leo XII
      • Pope Pius VIII
      • Pope Gregory XVI
      • Pope Pius X
      • Pope Benedict XV
      • Pope Pius XI
      • Pope Pius XII
      • Pope John XXIII
      • The Stuarts
    • Portico >
      • Door of Death
      • Door of Good and Evil
      • Central Door
      • Door of the Sacraments
      • Holy Door
    • Pieta
    • Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament
    • Cathedra Petri
    • Crossing >
      • Baldacchino
      • Confessio
      • Dome
      • St Longinus
      • St Helena
      • St Veronica
      • St Andrew
    • St Peter
    • Chapel of the Choir
    • Chapel of the Baptistery
    • Nave
  • Sistine Chapel
    • North Wall
    • South Wall
    • East Wall
    • Ceiling: Part One >
      • Ceiling: Part Two
      • Ceiling: Part Three
    • The Last Judgement
  • Fountains
    • Trevi Fountain
    • Fontana della Barcaccia
    • Fountain of the Triton
    • Fountain of the Bees
    • Fountain of Moses
    • Fountain of the Four Rivers
    • Fountain of the Acqua Paola
    • Fountain of the Turtles
    • Fountain of the Naiads
    • Fountain of the Cannonball
    • Piazza del Popolo
    • Fountain of the Pantheon
    • Fountains of Piazza Farnese
    • Fountain of Goddess Roma
    • Rioni Fountains
    • Street Fountains
    • Venice Marries the Sea
    • St Peter's Square
    • Fountain of the Moor
    • Fountain of Neptune
    • Fountain of the Porter
    • Fountain of the Seahorses
  • Gallery
    • Piazzas >
      • Piazza del Campidglio
      • Piazza del Quirinale
      • Piazza del Popolo
      • Piazza di Spagna
      • Piazza Navona
      • Piazza S. M. in Trastevere
      • Piazza San Pietro
    • Mosaics
    • Fountains
    • Churches
    • Ancient Rome
    • Palaces
    • Domes
    • Papal Coats of Arms
    • Street Shrines
    • Old Photographs
    • Borromini & the Baroque
  • Images of the Eternal City