PicturesOnGold.com Our Lady of Guadalupe Religious Medal Unisex Female Adult - 2/3 inch Size of Dime, Sterling Silver, CHAIN IS NOT INCLUDED Available in Solid 14K Yellow or White Gold, or in Sterling Silver Our Lady of Guadalupe (Spanish: Nuestra Se ora de Guadalupe), also called the Virgin of Guadalupe (Spanish: Virgen de Guadalupe) and a 16th century Roman Catholic icon depicting an apparition of the Virgin Mary. It is Mexicos most beloved religious and cultural image. Our Lady of Guadalupe is known in Mexico as "La Virgen Morena", which means "The brown-skinned Virgin". Our Lady of Guadalupe feast day is celebrated on December 12, commemorating the account of her appearances to Saint Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac near Mexico City from December 9 through December 12, 1531. The Virgin of Guadalupe is a cultural symbol of significant importance to the Mexican identity. The Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City is the second most visited Roman catholic shrine in the world after the Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican. According to traditional Catholic accounts of the Guadalupe apparitions, during a walk from his village to the city on the early morning of December 9, 1531, Juan Diego saw a vision of the Virgin - a young girl of fourteen to sixteen, surrounded by light- at the Hill of Tepeyac. Speaking in Nahuatl, the Lady asked for a church to be built at that site in her honor. When Juan Diego spoke to the Spanish bishop, Fray Juan de Zum raga, the bishop asked him for a miraculous sign to prove his claim. The Virgin asked Juan Diego to gather some flowers at the top of the hill, even though it was winter when no flowers bloomed. He found there Castillian roses, gathered them, and the Virgin herself re-arranged them in his tilma. Diego presented these to bishop Zum raga. When he presented the roses to Zum raga, the image of the Vir.
