How to get there and what to see at the Nostra Signora della Guardia Sanctuary, a popular place of worship in Liguria, historical origins and the Feast of the Madonna della Guardia in August.
Tourist information
On the top of Mount Figogna, near Genoa at about 800 meters above sea level, stands the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Guard, from whose terrace you can admire a unique panorama.
The history of this Sanctuary begins in 1490, when the Madonna appeared to a farmer from Livellato in Valpolcevera, while she was grazing her flock on the top of Mount Figogna.
During the apparition, the Virgin Mary asked the farmer named Benedetto Pareto to build a chapel on the top of the mountain, but Benedetto, discouraged, was unable to achieve what the Virgin Mary requested.
Only later, when Maria appeared to him again and healed him after a fall from a tree that had reduced him to the end of his life, did he build the chapel, also encouraged by his wife who initially hindered him.
Mount Figogna since ancient times was a crucial point of observation in case of danger from the sea or land, hence the name Madonna della Guardia.
In a very short time it became a very popular place, with many people reaching the summit on foot despite the eight kilometers of ascent, it was necessary to build a large enough church, which was able to accommodate pilgrims.
The construction of a larger basilica began in 1890, but when the building was almost completed it was realized that the position was wrong, so the terrain on the top of the mountain was preferred.
Once the top of the mountain was leveled, the existing guesthouse was demolished and what had already been built for the new church was demolished.
With the great commitment of the people and Archbishop Salvatore Magnasco, the work was finally completed.
The current Shrine was inaugurated on May 26, 1890.
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On the occasion of the feast of Our Lady of the Guard, which is celebrated on August 29 of each year, solemn celebrations are held, including the procession from the Chapel of the Apparition to the Shrine.
The Sanctuary of the Madonna della Guardia was visited by John Paul II in 1990, on the occasion of the 500th anniversary.
In 2008 Pope Benedict XVI visited the Shrine and donated the Golden Rose that we can admire today at the feet of the Virgin, in 2017 Pope Francis also visited this place of worship.
What see
The Basilica has a Latin cross plan with three naves, in the center, behind the altar and inside a precious temple, there is the statue of the Madonna della Guardia, a wooden masterpiece created by Antonio Giuseppe Canepa in 1894.
In the sacristy, the ancient altar of the first church shows the bas-relief where the scene of the apparition with the Madonna and Benedetto Pareto, dating back to the first half of the sixteenth century, is represented for the first time.
In a room, whose entrance is in the left aisle of the church, the innumerable ex votos for grace received are preserved, which over the centuries have been brought to the Madonna della Guardia.
How to get
To reach the Sanctuary, the Guidovia was inaugurated in 1929, which remained in operation until 1964, when it was replaced by the new asphalted road, which from Bolzaneto reaches the Sanctuary in less than fifteen minutes.
Under the Chapel of the Apparition there are large parking lots.
