The brass crucifix was twisted by the blast, but the image of the Virgin was left intact

On November 14, 1921, in Mexico, Luciano Perez, employed by the Secretariat of the Mexican presidency, placed a flower wreath laced with dynamite at the foot of the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The image of the Virgin Mary miraculously inscribed on Saint Juan Diego’s garment or tilma was displayed in a silver frame next to the crucifix.

The force of the explosion destroyed the marble steps of the main altar. The heavy brass crucifix was thrown so hard that it twisted in the blast. The windows of nearby houses exploded.

But the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was left completely intact from the explosion whose epicenter was at her foot—neither the frame nor the protective glass were damaged.

In 365 méditations sur la Vierge Marie (365 Meditations on the Virgin Mary), Presses de la Renaissance