El viaje iniciático a través de los colores en la simbología de la Virgen Negra de Częstochowa

Abstract

Yasna Gora (the bright hill) became the most famous sanctuary in Poland thanks to the miraculous presence of the Virgin’s image, hidden behind an engraving made of silver which rises up twice a day. The miraculous image of the Virgin of Chzęstochowa is known as the Black Madonna because of its dark coloured face. As the legend goes, Lucas the evangelist painted the icon at the Holy Family table. The painting belongs to the type Odigitria (that who shows the way and guides) with the faces of Mary and the Child apparently staring at the pilgrim. The Virgin’s cheek is marked with two parallel scratches and her neck shows six more. The icon remained around Jerusalem and Constantinople before arriving to what nowadays is Poland, where it has become the recipient of numerous offerings.