Santuario di Santa Maria in Vado

Ferrara's Sanctuary of Santa Maria in Vado stands near the site of an old ford of the Po. Rebuilt from 1495, the basilica preserves a small vault associated by tradition with a Eucharistic miracle said to have taken place in 1171.

Why it matters

According to the sanctuary's tradition, during Easter Mass on 28 March 1171 a consecrated host appeared to shed blood, staining the vault above the altar. The vault was transferred from the earlier church into the rebuilt basilica in 1501 and remains the spiritual focus of the sanctuary. The Diocese of Ferrara-Comacchio records the event among the early Eucharistic miracle traditions.

What to notice

The Renaissance basilica incorporates the older church around the chapel of the miracle. A small tempietto, attributed to Alessandro Balbi and dated to around 1594, encloses the venerated vault. The interior includes ceiling paintings by Carlo Bononi, canvases by Domenico Mona and a gilded altarpiece with Camillo Filippi's sixteenth-century Annunciation.

Context and history

Worship at the site predates the present basilica: a votive image of the Virgin was associated with the location by the fifth century, and a church is documented in the early Middle Ages. The parish was established in 1115. Rebuilding began in 1495, involving Biagio Rossetti and other artists and builders; sources differ on the design attribution. Since 1930, the parish has been entrusted to the Congregation of the Precious Blood. The sanctuary's recorded visitors include Pope Alexander III in 1177 and Pope John Paul II in 1990.