Copacabana, the beach of the Black Madonna

Everyone in Rio knows Copacabana, but you may not know that this beach got its name from a small town on the shores of Lake Titicaca, where the Black Madonna is venerated. Known as the “Black Virgin” or the “Candlemas Virgin” (Virgen de la Candelaria), the Copacabana statue is venerated by all South American indigenous communities. 

This Virgin is said to work miracles. One of them gave its name to the future Rio de Janeiro's famous beach: in 1754, a sailor caught in a storm off the coast of Brazil implored Our Lady of Copacabana to come to his rescue. Saved from shipwreck, he consecrated a chapel to her on the very spot where a fort would one day stand, near today’s famous beach!

Since 1925, the Virgin has also been the Patron Saint of Bolivia. Bolivians, as well as Peruvians, flock to Copacabana to obtain the blessing of the “Black Virgin”, whose statue can be seen inside the cathedral, in the choir of the altar.

Jean-Philippe Damiani

http://www.routard.com/ - July 23, 2008