Black Madonna of Częstochowa

The Mother of God has occupied an important place in the beliefs of rural communities, as in the whole of Polish Catholicism, which is distinguished by the variety of forms of the Marian cult. As a mediatrix between God and the Son of God, she is very often the addressee of prayers, requests and supplications. Numerous Marian shrines, located almost all over the world, are connected to her cult. In Poland they constitute about 80 per cent of all shrines. In the 15th century, with the growing dominance of the Marian cult, pilgrimages to miraculous images depicting the Madonna developed. The most famous are: Jasna Góra in Częstochowa, with the image of the Black Madonna, or Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, with the image of the Weeping Mother of God. In the Lublin region, Marian sanctuaries are located, among others, in: Chełm (image of Our Lady of Chełm), Hrubieszów (image of Our Lady of Sokal), Janów Lubelski (image of Our Lady of Grace-Różańcowa), Kodń (image of Our Lady of Kodeńska), Krasnobród (image of Our Lady of Krasnobród), Lublin (painting of Our Lady of Weeping), Radzyń Podlaski (painting of Our Lady of Perpetual Help), Tomaszów Lubelski (painting of Our Lady of the Scapular), Wąwolnica (sculpture of Our Lady of Kębel).

In the 17th and 18th centuries, along with mass pilgrimages to Marian sanctuaries, the art of copying miraculous images developed on a huge scale. It was practised mainly by lay masters coming from the environment of guild craftsmen, settled near larger places of worship. Copies of paintings from sanctuaries were venerated almost as much as the originals, even though non-professional painters often omitted characteristic details.

The elements of the Marian cult were also giving numerous titles to the Mother of God, holding devotions in her honour, praying for her intentions or intercession, and celebrating Marian feasts. Some of them fall on: 2 February - Our Lady of Thunder, 26 April - Our Lady of Good Counsel, 3 May - Our Lady Queen of Poland, 24 May - Our Lady Help of the Faithful, 27 June - Our Lady of Perpetual Help, 2 July - Our Lady of Kodeń, 26 July - St Anne, mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 2 August - Our Lady of the Angels, 8 December - Our Lady Immaculate.