This is the original image of Our Lady of Fatima, venerated in the Chapel of the Apparitions in Portugal since 1920.
Many people do not know that it was carved from Brazilian cedar wood by the Portuguese sculptor José Ferreira Thedim, who created the image based on the descriptions given by Sister Lucia, one of the little shepherds who saw the Virgin Mary in 1917.
The statue measures only 1.10 meters (about 3 feet 7 inches) and, for more than a century, it has become one of the most beloved Marian symbols in the world. It was solemnly crowned on May 13, 1946, by mandate of Pope Pius XII.
Every detail of this image speaks of simplicity, peace, and prayer. Her hands holding the Rosary continue to remind us of Mary’s call to conversion and trust in God.