The Bambino Gesu of Arenzano locally known as Il Grande Piccinino (Lit: Child Jesus of Arenzano, the Great Little Child) is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

devotional image depicting the

Child Jesus The Christ Child, also known as Divine Infant, Baby Jesus, Infant Jesus, the Divine Child, Child Jesus, the Holy Child, Santo Niño, and to some as Señor Noemi refers to Jesus Christ from his nativity to age 12. The four canonical gospels, a ...

venerated by the Genoese faithful. The image takes its iconography from a painting of

Infant Jesus of Prague The Infant Jesus of Prague ( cs, Pražské Jezulátko: es, Niño Jesús de Praga) is a 16th-century wax-coated wooden statue of the Child Jesus holding a '' globus cruciger'' of Spanish origin, now located in the Discalced Carmelite Church o ...

which was brought by the Carmelite Order who wanted to propagate its devotion in the area. Italian Marchioness Delfina Gavotti of Savona used her personal funds to build a statuary image in 1902, which merited a Pontifical decree of coronation in 1924, partly due to her pious fanaticism to the

under this title. Various miraculous claims are associated with the image by its pilgrims, now preserved within the basilica. The image is celebrated with an annual religious feast on 1 September.

History

The image was donated by the Marquise Delfina Gavotti of Savona and was presented to the built shrine on 2 June 1902. It replaced a picture image of the

brought by the Carmelite Order on 25 September 1900, which was located beneath the statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The Marquise Delfina Gavotti of Savona was married to Marquis Girolamo of the prominent Gavotti clan. They had one son who died at stillbirth, Pietro Gavotti, which may have encouraged her fanatical devotion to the

. The Marquise Delfina of Gavotti was also a prominent patroness of the Marian shrine of

Santuario della Consolata The Santuario della Madonna Consolata or, in its full name, the Church of the Virgin of the Consolation is a Marian sanctuary and minor basilica in central Turin, Piedmont, Italy. Colloquially, the sanctuary is known as ''La Consolata''. It is loc ...

, where she was listed in the shrine literature “Missioni Consolata”, (The third consecutive year, issue #8) as a generous patron of the church published in August 1901. Pope Pius XI granted a

Canonical coronation A canonical coronation ( la, Coronatio Canonica) is a pious institutional act of the pope, duly expressed in a bull, in which the pope bestows the right to impose an ornamental crown, a diadem or an aureole to an image of Christ, Mary or J ...

to the venerated image on 24 February 1924 via his Papal legate Cardinal

Rafael Merry del Val Rafael Merry del Val y Zulueta, (10 October 1865 – 26 February 1930) was a Spanish Roman Catholic cardinal. Before becoming a cardinal, he served as the secretary of the papal conclave of 1903 that elected Pope Pius X, who is said to have ac ...

. The solemn ceremony was executed on 6 September 1924 and was attended by many notable prelates, namely the young seminarian at the time, Cardinal

Giuseppe Siri Giuseppe Siri (20 May 1906 – 2 May 1989) was an Italian cardinal of the Catholic Church who served as Archbishop of Genoa from 1946 to 1987, and was elevated to the rank of cardinal in 1953. He was a protege of Pope Pius XII. He was considered ...

and Queen

Margherita of Savoy Margherita of Savoy (''Margherita Maria Teresa Giovanna''; 20 November 1851 – 4 January 1926) was Queen of Italy by marriage to Umberto I. Life Early life Margherita was born to Prince Ferdinand of Savoy, Duke of Genoa and Princess Elisabe ...

. The same

Pontiff A pontiff (from Latin ''pontifex'') was, in Roman antiquity, a member of the most illustrious of the colleges of priests of the Roman religion, the College of Pontiffs."Pontifex". "Oxford English Dictionary", March 2007 The term "pontiff" was la ...

raised the sanctuary to the status of a

Minor Basilica In the Catholic Church, a basilica is a designation given by the Pope to a church building. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular ...

on 6 May 1928 through an Apostolic decree signed by the

Vatican Secretary of State The Secretary of State of His Holiness (Latin: Secretarius Status Sanctitatis Suae, it, Segretario di Stato di Sua Santità), commonly known as the Cardinal Secretary of State, presides over the Holy See's Secretariat of State, which is the ...

Cardinal

Pietro Gasparri Pietro Gasparri, GCTE (5 May 1852 – 18 November 1934) was a Roman Catholic cardinal, diplomat and politician in the Roman Curia and the signatory of the Lateran Pacts. He served also as Cardinal Secretary of State under Popes Benedict XV and ...

, where the image is permanently enshrined today.

References

{{reflist 1902 sculptures Catholic adoration of Jesus Catholic Church in Italy Statues of the infant Jesus Province of Genoa

History

See also

References