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A celebration is dedicated to the Our Lady of Grace of Nettuno in May. During the week the statue is transported to the Collegiate Church of San Giovanni and then returned to its location, the Sanctuary-Basilica of Nostra Signora delle Grazie and Santa Maria Goretti, after a week.
Celebrations for the feast of Our Lady of Grace
Our Lady of Grace is carried and accompanied by the people of Nettuno from the Sanctuary of Santa Maria Goretti and Our Lady of Graces to the Church of San Giovanni, in the medieval village. All the brotherhoods of the city’s parishes parade. There are the representatives of the neighboring municipalities, the children dressed as little boys and the girls as angels, the educational associations. Also there are the Neptune band, the prioresses, the municipal administration, the civil authorities , military authorities and citizens. The prioress was formerly a Neptune woman belonging to the clergy, aristocratic and unmarried. During the solemn procession the girls chosen for the role wear the typical costume of the Neptune woman. Finally, the week of May of Nettuno celebrations is accompanied by a concert, food and wine stands.
The tradition behind the celebration
Tradition has it that the effigy of the Madonna arrived in Nettuno in 1550. It came from England. Due to the Anglican schism declared by Henry VIII, monasteries and churches were confiscated. Also the statues of the saints destroyed. Some sailors thus decided to save the effigy by taking it to Napoli on their ship. Due to a storm, the boat landed on the coast of Nettuno, in front of the mouth of the Loricina river. The arrival of the Madonna on the coasts of Nettuno was interpreted as the desire of Our Lady of Graces to remain in this place.
According to the reconstructions carried out by scholars, the statue comes from Ipswich, Suffolk. In fact, there was a famous sanctuary in the area which was destroyed by Cromwell between July and September 1538. In one of its chapels a miraculous Image of Our Lady of Grace was venerated. Some pious sailors took from the house of Cromwell with the aim of taking her to Napoli.
Basilica of Our Lady of Graces and Santa Maria Goretti
The Sanctuary-Basilica of Our Lady of Graces and Santa Maria Goretti stands where once there was the church of the Annunziata. It was built in 1914, by will of Pope Pio. The current Sanctuary is composed of an upper floor, dedicated to the Madonna and the two saints Sebastiano and Rocco. Then there is a crypt, which has housed the remains of Santa Maria Goretti since 1929.
