The sanctuary of Nostra Signora della Guardia - known more simply as the sanctuary of the Guard - is the most important Marian sanctuary in Liguria and one of the most important in Italy. Built on the top of Mount Figogna, at 804 m above sea level, it is located about 20 km from Genoa and in ancient times it was a strategic point for observing enemy ships or armies. According to a notarial deed dated 1530 and preserved in the historical archive of the archiepiscopal curia of Genoa and according to the tradition of the Polcevera valley, the Madonna appeared to the shepherd Benedetto Pareto on August 29, 1490. The Virgin asked Pareto to have a chapel built on the mountain . A few days later the Virgin healed the shepherd who had fallen from a tree and was in very serious condition. This event convinced him to talk about the visions he had and to seek help to build the chapel. Still according to tradition, the first chapel was built by Pareto himself on the site of the apparition. It is a small rectangular building topped with a wooden roof. Inside in a niche there is a marble statue of the Madonna donated in 1530. The marble altar dates back to 1632. In 1850 the marble statue of Benedetto Pareto was also added. The statue depicting Don Orione in prayer outside the chapel of the Apparition is the work of the Luinese sculptor Pietro Zegna who works in Milan. The growing flow of pilgrims led to the construction of the first sanctuary which took place between 1528 and 1530 thanks to donations from the faithful and the Ghersi nobles. In the mid-nineteenth century the construction of a new sanctuary became necessary. On 14 June 1857 the first stone was laid and the works proceeded slowly until 1865 when the site chosen for the construction was deemed unsuitable and what had already been built was demolished. However, the construction works of the new sanctuary only began in 1878 thanks to the will of the new archbishop Salvatore Magnasco and to the work of the inhabitants of the valley who, in turn, provided free labor for the construction of the church, which was completed in 1889 and inaugurated on 26 May 1890.
Inside, the central nave and the counter-façade are decorated with frescoes by Antonio Giuseppe Santagata from 1963 dedicated to the life of the Virgin. The frescoes in the dome, made by Pasquale Arzuffi of Bergamo, represent Mary surrounded by the patron saints of the Republic of Genoa. Behind the marble altar is a small temple designed by Richini with the statue of the Madonna della Guardia, sculpted in 1894 by Antonio Canepa; to the left of the main altar aedicule, a black processional crucifix. The left aisle leads to the ex voto room. Here the faithful bring objects or messages of recognition to Mary every day.
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