Other Black Madonnas
The wooden sculpture in the Benedictine monastery of Mount Monserrat (Spain) is thought to have been carved in the 10th century. It was here that St.Ignatius spent his vigil night in the 1500’s before leaving his weapons of war beside the madonna and descending to the plain next morning. The sculpture has been blackened by the smoke of centuries – Hence the name ‘Black Madonna’. A pilgrimage centre for the devout from all over the world, Czestochowa (Poland) is the site of the famous ‘Jasna Gora Monastery’ where the miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary, better known as the Black Madonna, is a magnet for the faithful and the curious. Legend has it that the icon was painted by St.Luke the Evangelist on a piece of cypresswood from the table used by Mary of Nazareth. The icon was brought over from Jerusalem and installed in the monastery around 1384, less than 50 years later it was damaged during an attack by the Hussites. Although painstakingly restored, it still bears the scars of that destruction – sword slashes on the cheek of the Black Madonna. (Artists note: My ‘Black Madonna’ was created by earth and fire, carved by wind and water).