The Shrine of Our Lady of the Bulge

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🎧 STAGE 12 – THE SHRINE OF MADONNA DEL BALZO

Nestled in the quiet heights of Bisacquino, the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Balzo is one of the most evocative and spiritually intense places in the area. Its construction began in 1664, following events believed to be miraculous, which occurred after a mysterious image of the Madonna was found in a natural cavity.

Tradition says that two young peasants, having discovered the effigy, felt impelled to venerate it. However, with the fickleness inherent in youth, they became engrossed in other material passions, particularly gambling.

One of the two, annoyed at losing a sum of money, angrily hurled a stone toward the head of the image: from there gushed forth living drops of blood. The boy fell dead instantly.

The distraught friend ran to the village to break the news. The young man’s parents, along with a crowd of Bisacquinese, rushed to the scene. It was at that moment that the first miracle took place: the mother, amid tears and faith, prayed to the Virgin with such intensity that her son suddenly came back to life.
Shaken and moved, the townspeople decided to build a shrine right there on the mountain, despite the roughness of the terrain.

Driven by faith, the Bisacquinese donated everything they could, collecting no less than 20,000 scudi and making possible the construction of the first core of the shrine, which over the years has been enriched with works, rooms and treasures.

Under the direction of Bisacquinese Pietro Scalora, a solid masonry rampart was built, which served as the base for the construction of the church, designed with the contribution of architect Vincenzo Nicolosi.

During the work, another miraculous episode strengthened the devotion: a laborer, Giovanni Rosato, fell from a scaffold and crashed among the boulders. His body, devoid of signs of life, was placed by his companions in front of the holy image. He, too, awoke, by grace received.

The work was completed in 1679. At the end of the eighteenth century, with the construction of the new altar in precious marble, the miraculous image was concealed, further fueling the mysterious charm of this place.