Sanctuary of Our Lady of Bardzka Guardian of the Faith
Medals available at the Sanctuary!
In Bardo Śląskie, at the Church of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary run by the Redemptorist Fathers, there is the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lower Silesia, Guardian of the Faith, with the statue of the Enthroned Madonna.
The miraculous statue is the oldest Romanesque sculpture in Lower Silesia, dating back to the 12th century. Most art historians attribute it to an unknown artist from Rhineland and associate its arrival with the Cistercians, who managed the sanctuary for 600 years.
The 42.7 cm tall statue is carved from beech wood and polychromed. It depicts the Virgin Mary with the Child Jesus on her lap. Mary sits on a simple throne with a backrest and armrests. In her right hand, extended forward, she holds a globe, while Jesus holds a book with his left hand and raises his right in a blessing gesture. Both figures smile slightly. The statue is displayed in a glass case above the tabernacle. Following Western tradition, it is dressed in beautiful royal capes changed according to liturgical seasons, adorned with silver and gold. The base contains relics of Redemptorist saints: St. Alphonsus Liguori (founder of the Redemptorists), St. Clement, and St. Gerard. Pilgrims pay homage by kissing this base.
The history of the statue (and its associated devotion) is ancient and shrouded in legend. One tale tells how the Virgin appeared to a pious youth in Bardo and gave him this statue. Moved, he placed it in a roadside tree to bless travelers. Chronicles record that in 1270, a Czech knight experienced healing here, marking the beginning of pilgrimages that intensified after 1440 when, according to tradition, the weeping Virgin appeared on Bardo Mountain, leaving a footprint in stone. Numerous healings attracted pilgrims from Poland, Bohemia, Moravia, and Germany. Votive paintings preserved to this day testify to graces received through Mary’s intercession.
In the early 18th century, a Calvary path with 6 Marian chapels was built. In the early 20th century, the Redemptorists established a “Rosary Way” with 15 chapels. On Bardo Mountain, recognized as the apparition site, a 1619 chapel remains.
