Santuario della Madonna delle Grazie

On a bend of the Maremmana road opposite Pitigliano, the Sanctuary of Madonna delle Grazie is among the oldest sanctuaries of the diocese. The Franciscan church, probably built before 1400, preserves the image of the Virgin associated with the town’s annual thanksgiving vow.

Why it matters

In 1580 an epidemic struck Pitigliano, and the townspeople vowed to honour the Madonna venerated at the sanctuary. After the sickness passed, they held a thanksgiving procession on 2 July 1581. The observance moved to 8 September in 1783 and remains part of the town’s devotional tradition. The sanctuary stands outside the walls and faces the tuff town across the valley.

What to notice

The façade has an architraved portal beneath a triangular tympanum and a large circular rose window. The former convent adjoins one side of the church, with a square bell tower on the other. Inside, the venerated image of the Blessed Virgin is kept in a niche alongside Baroque and Mannerist works. A rose garden and terrace look across the valley towards Pitigliano. The Via Cava della Madonna delle Grazie, an approximately 350-metre route through tuff, climbs to the sanctuary; local tradition associates the site with an apparition of the Virgin around 1400.

Context and history

Franciscan conventual friars cared for the church from its early history until the end of the eighteenth century. The 1580 epidemic vow and the procession of 1581 shaped the sanctuary’s role in civic devotion. The first procession was repeated until 1783, when the observance moved to the feast of the Name of Mary on 8 September. The church is recorded in the Italian Episcopal Conference’s national inventory as the parish church of the Madonna delle Grazie.