Mater Admirabilis

Mater Admirabilis is a fresco depicting the Virgin Mary, at the Trinità dei Monti, a church in Rome. It was painted by a young French girl, Pauline Perdrau, and has been associated with several miracles.

Legend has it Pauline had been asked by the nuns at Trinità dei Monti to paint a mural of the Blessed Mother. After weeks of painting, Pauline finally finished her work. When the Mother Superior saw it, she said the colors were too bright and bold and immediately covered it with a large piece of fabric. Years later, Pope Pius IX was visiting the church and questioned what was behind the drape. The Mother Superior tried to distract the Pope from it, but he demanded to see it. When he drew back the fabric, it revealed the painting Pauline had created years before. The colors had faded and blended together to create a softer image than the years before. The Pope declared her Mater Admirabilis, mother most admirable. He told the Mother Superior to never cover this beautiful piece of work again.

Pope Leo XII offered in 1828 the Trinità dei Monti to the religious of the Sacred Heart. Perdrau born in 1817, who would later become a Religious of the Sacred Heart, painted the fresco in 1844. It was called Mater Admirabilis by Pope Pius IX, when he discovered it on October 20, 1846. This date is the Feast of Mater, as celebrated by the Society of the Sacred Heart.


External links