The Virgin of Covadonga, religious images

Virgin of Covadonga

The Virgin of Covadonga , popularly known as the Santina , is an image of the Virgin Mary found in a cave in Covadonga (the word Covadonga means precisely the Cave of the Lady, Cova Dominica), council of Cangas de Onís, Principality of Asturias, Spain. The current carving dates from the 16th century and was donated to the Sanctuary by the Cathedral of Oviedo in 1778. In Religious Articles Brabander we want to pay a special tribute to this image of the Virgin Mary.

Virgin of Covadonga, the story of Don Pelayo.

The history of the Virgin of Covadonga is deeply linked to the figure of Don Pelayo, the first king of Asturias , famous for the victory he won against the Moors in Covadonga that began the reconquest of Spain. It is said that Pelayo saw a cross in the sky surrounded by light with the words "Hoc signo vincitur inimicus" : the enemy is defeated with the sign of the cross.

Others say that Pelayo arrived at the Cueva del Auseva chasing a malefactor and that a hermit who venerated a rustic image of the Virgin told him that it was best to invoke divine protection through the Blessed Virgin to achieve the triumph of Christian weapons. He built an oak cross , which served him as a standard in battle, becoming famous in the annals of the Homeland. This Cross continued to be hoisted on the battlefields and the Monarchs of Spain paid it homage of veneration. During the preparation of the Moorish attack against Pelayo's army, Bishop Oppas, concerned, tries to convince him to withdraw the troops and avoid further bloodshed. Pelayo with great confidence answers the Bishop: "Haven't you read in Sacred Scripture that the Lord's Church is like a mustard seed, that as small as it is, through the grace of God, it grows more than another seed?" The Bishop replied: "truly so it is written". Pelayo told him: "Our hope is in Christ, and this little mountain will be the salvation of the Spanish people and of the Godos, their Love and Kindness will free us from the enemy."

And this is what is great, wonderful and amazing about the miracle of Covadonga . The intervention of the Cross of Christ, a sign of our redemption, which, inflaming the brave Christian initiators of the Reconquest, defeated the enemy who was trying to put an end to the Christian faith. The intervention of the heavenly army is undoubtedly the explanation for the triumph over the army of the Moors. Saint Michael the Archangel at the forefront of the battle, surrounded the Cave and raising his sword gave the battle order to the entire heavenly court, thus eliminating most of the Moors.

After the great victory, Pelayo was acclaimed king and the Blessed Virgin is declared Queen and Patron of Asturias . From this moment begins the Christian reconquest of Iberia (old name of Spain) that culminated in the defeat of the last Moors in 1492 under the reign of Fernando and Isabel, who were great devotees of San Miguel Arcángel.

Current image of the Virgin of Covadonga

The first image of the Santina was lost due to a fire that destroyed the church that housed it inside. This Romanesque-style image was part of a wooden structure that hung in the air, surrounded by the waterfall of the Deva River. Just one year later and given the religious and also political importance of the sanctuary, the cathedral of Oviedo donated the image of the current Virgin. This image, which was baptized as the "Virgen de las Batallas" due to its historical past, is a polychrome carving covered with clothing and a mantle. However, it was conceived to be shown without the clothing and this mantle to which we refer is painted on the wood in a greenish blue, which is adorned with vertically aligned red flowers. The cape, which due to its small size can hardly be seen if you look at it from the front, is reddish in color with the edges finished in gold. The belt and the bottom of the skirt carved on the sculpture are of the same reddish color.

The Virgin holds the Child in her left hand and holds a golden flower in her right. On the face of the figure, adorned by a long hair, simple and very little expressive features are drawn. The face of the Child, naked, is also expressionless. They both have a small mouth, a thin already elongated nose, and a lost look under extremely fine and symmetrically perfect eyebrows.

On the head of the Virgin is adorned with a huge golden crown with pearls on each of its edges and adorned with embedded diamonds. From the arch that describes the upper part of the crown hangs an eagle surrounded by a circle also of diamonds. Sometimes, when the image is going to be exhibited, this crown, as well as that of the Child, is replaced by others of lesser value.

You can learn more about other images of the Virgin Mary in other posts on our blog, such as the Immaculate Conception of Mary .