Relive the streets and destinations of medieval pilgrims in the 21st century. It is the intention proposed by this itinerary designed on a portion of the Bolognese Apennines, between Loiano and Monghidoro, along the Via Mater Dei, a path particularly rich in shrines with great charm, as befits the mountain places.
The mountain feel, where Marian worship predominates, is expressed in small and often simple buildings that are capable, however, of transmitting to the visitor a sense of peace and intense spirituality.
Less than an hour by car from Bologna you reach the town of Loiano. In a landscape made of oak, beech and chestnut trees, taking the ridge towards Monghidoro you reach the Sanctuary of Santa Maria dei boschi.
Immersed in the vegetation, the building stands on the remains of an ancient church founded in 1616 called Beata Vergine del Nuvoleto or Bocca di Nugoletto.
Sober outside, it surprises, as soon as you cross the entrance, with the variety and beauty of the works of art it houses, some by the sculptor Antonio Gambarini. In particular, there is the icon of the Blessed Virgin with Child that dominates the high altar.
The spiritual activity of the building is curated by a very active community of Franciscan Friars and every day at 7 am, from Monday to Saturday, and Sunday at 9 am, you can participate in a very fascinating Latin celebration.
Proceeding towards the nearby campsite you reach the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes (also known as "Church of San Prospero di Campeggio").
The origin of the place is very ancient, although the first certain information dates back to 1223. The name of Our Lady of Lourdes is due to a side chapel on the right of the church dedicated to San Prospero, where the Grotto of Massabielle of Lourdes in France is reproduced, representing the Blessed Immaculate Virgin with Bernadette at her feet and the stream that recalls the miraculous spring.
The work, impactful and of artistic value, was made at the beginning of the 1900s by the craftsman Ravasio Guelfo. Through a passage behind the rock you can approach the statue of the Madonna.
The bell tower of the church dates back to the early 1700s and the current religious building is of the late 1800s.
At about 3 kilometers from Monghidoro, in the center of the charming village of Piamaggio, between old stone houses and taverns, stands at about 800 meters high the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii.
Before the current building of worship, around 1600 there was a small oratory dedicated to San Francesco di Paola and then to San Lorenzo martire.
The church was built in 1893 by the will of Monsignor Giuseppe Fanti, who decided to place inside the image of Our Lady of Pompeii to promote the devotion of SS. Rosario.
Later funds were raised to have the image of the Blessed Virgin painted by the Bolognese painter Sante Nucci and buy the pictures of the 15 Mysteries of the Rosary that framed it admirably.
In 1898 the stone porch on the facade was built and in the following decades the Sanctuary became a destination for pilgrimages from Bologna and Tuscany.
