The therapeutic Sanctuary of Sant’Angelo de Gructis, also known as Eremo della Madonna del Riparo, stands on the slopes of Monte Cologna, near Roviglieto, in the province of Perugia. An ancient place that is still rich in charm and mysticism to this day, a site that you absolutely must visit.
The history of this religious retreat
The Eremo della Madonna del Riparo is comprised of a church and a deep, very wide cave that houses a cistern that is always full of water, deemed miraculous. On one side, carved in the rock, there is the home of the ‘Romito’, a hermit appointed to guard the Sanctuary. On the other side a small altar decorates the fresco of the Madonna del Riparo. The church, restructured in the 19th century, was built at a later date, when the image of the Virgin of Mercy was discovered in 1842.
Before the Madonna del Riparo: the Sanctuary of Sant’Angelo de Gructis
Before that date, in fact, the site was a Sanctuary that collected prodigious water: The Sanctuary of Sant’Angelo de Gructis, was built in the 11th century by the Counts of Uppello. The site was abandoned following miraculous event in Rasiglia, in which Our Lady of Graces was attributed with the resurrection of a child. The inhabitants of Roviglieto, therefore, directed their prayers towards the Virgin worshipped in Rasiglia. The Sanctuary restored to its ancient splendour only following the lucky discovery of the fresco of the Madonna del Riparo, in 1842.
When you can visit the Eremo della Madonna del Riparo
The Sanctuary was a pilgrimage destination for the celebration of Saint Michael the Archangel, when pilgrims would come to drink and splash themselves with the water of the cave for therapeutic purposes. Even though these acts of worship are still practiced today, the Eremo della Madonna del Riparo is closed during the year: one can only visit on specific dates:
- During the days of the Ascension
- On 29 September during the celebration of Saint Michael, when half a loaf of white bread is distributed to the pilgrims on the parvise in remembrance of the ritual practiced for centuries by the Counts of Foligno
- Christmas night
- By contacting the Federici family in Sant’Eraclio di Foligno for a private visit
How to get to the Madonna del Riparo
From the Flaminia trunk road you take the municipal road that runs from Sant’Eraclio, in Foligno, up the slopes of Monte Cologna passing through Scandolaro all the way to Roviglieto. From there take the gravel road to the hermitage.
Picture credits: www.sentierinellafasciaolivata.it
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