BASILICA MADONNA DELL'UMILTÀ
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The construction of the Basilica of Our Lady of Humility began in 1495 to celebrate a miraculous event: while internal struggles raged in the city, some of the faithful saw tears on the fresco of the Virgin Mary nursing the Child Jesus (now preserved in the Rospigliosi Chapel). A huge church was then built, with a Renaissance dome (the third largest in Italy, after St. Peter's in Rome and Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence), on the very site of the miracle. The text of the time reports about the miraculous image as follows: "In the year of the Lord 1490, on Saturday, July 17, this image was seen pouring sweat, or liquor, from his Holy Head, which like clear water sprang clearly from its source, and from each part of the forehead miraculously irrigated his clothes. Because of this novelty, the church was attended with great devotion by some of them; once the miracle was seen, they began to ring the bells. "But the construction of the basilica took a long time, more than fifty years precisely, and was interrupted several times for financial reasons or because of internal vicissitudes, such as the fierce struggle between the Panciatichi and Cancellieri families who were fighting for political power. Today, the basilica is the most important Renaissance building in Pistoia, and its large dome is visible from all over the city.
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