The triumph of Mother Sant’Anna

Protectress of mothers and pregnant women, widows and embroiderers, her feast suppressed by St. Pius V in 1580, was returned and received in the Roman calendar in 1584, from 26 July 1913 Sant’Anna is remembered together with her husband Joachim.
In the tradition the cult of St. Anne that also binds Joachim is placed to that of the Immaculate Conception, their beloved daughter.
In Sicily the Franciscan fathers of the Third Order Regular who, starting from 1635, succeeded in spreading devotion and worship, establishing it as Patroness for their religious Province.
Countries like Aliminusa, Altofonte, Castelbuono where the cult dates back to the regency period of the aristocratic family of Ventimiglia who in 1300 acquired a skull as a relic of the Saint donated by the Duke of Lorena to Guglielmo Ventimiglia which is currently preserved in the pretty town.
The cult of Santa Flavia for this saint can be traced back almost to the origin of the village, which began its expansion towards the end of the seventeenth century, when the phenomenon of holiday became widespread in the Palermo area, the Filangeri family bought the principality of Santa Flavia, ex contrada di Solanto, to build its summer residence which subsequently determined the development of the town and the birth of the municipality of Santa Flavia.
Today the ancient eighteenth-century villa and its lush garden full of exotic and secular essences has become the property of the municipality that has made it its administrative headquarters.
In the place where later the lords built their personal chapel there was a small rural church consecrated to Sant’Anna.
The construction of the Basilica, commissioned by the three sons of the prince of Santa Flavia Cristofaro, one of whom was the Pope’s domestic prelate, began in 1705 and ended with the opening of the new religious building on July 25th. of 1756 consecrating it to the Holy Mother of the Madonna.
He received a second destination for worship on July 24, 1785 with a papal bull by the then Pope Pius VII who distinguished the Basilica called “soluntina”, admitting it to the Basilica of San.Giovanni in Laterano.

The Triumph of Sant’Anna – Visit Santa Flavia

Every year on July 26 in collaboration with the confraternities dedicated to her, both male and female, and the town of Santa Flavia organizes the solemn celebrations for her patron saint, between the sacred and the profane recalls an ancient tradition that has now become secular .
The festivities will open a solemn Novenario which will end the day dedicated to the Patron Saint with songs and litanies inside the Basilica.
Exciting is the procession of the simulacrum of Sant’Anna, which is placed on a characteristic “vara” that carried on the shoulders by young men of the male brotherhood, (in ancient times this practice was entrusted to the faithful who for devotion each year released a “vote” and they were called “bearers”, and accompanied by a large number of believers) through all the streets of the town, lit up for the occasion by a twinkle of multicolored lights, matched by the festive sound of the band, while the devotees raise prayers to her ascribed to honor.
If necessary, it is repeated an ancient custom, taken in recent times, to decorate the balconies of their homes by the faithful and show them to the passage of the procession of the Patron, on the town has established a prize for the best decoration.

Exit of the Madre Sant’Anna from the Soluntina Basilica

The ancient fercolo is adorned with floral motifs: adorned by red drapes with the municipal signs, where the wooden simulacres of Sant’Anna with the Madonna child are headed.
The wooden group, recalls the statue placed in a balcony of the main facade, neoclassical, located in one of the two orders of the Basilica, and installed in the early twentieth century, so that it can be seen from the main axis of the country that urbanistically cuts the territory .
The seventeenth-century sculptural complex is a work attributed to the master Filippo Quattrocchi, who has impressed his own authority, leaving that particular imprint that goes back to his style.
The soft drapery of the garments that enhance the harmonious bodies of the simulacra and the sophistication of the cloaks that surround them arouse a pleasant composition and plastic iconography.
The image of St. Anne is pleased to present her little creature, increased in her appearance and already shown as an adult.
Recently, the popular Flavian piety with its economic contribution and the permission of the artistic superintendency has allowed its restoration carried out by Professor Gaetano Correnti of Misilmeri who brought the work back to its former glory and allowing its identification of those who realized the work still unknown.
The solemn pontifical was announced by a festive alborata, the Eucharistic celebration presided over by the Auxiliary Bishop, civil and military authorities and faithful all participating in the afternoon in the impressive procession.
Concludes the ceremony the kiss of the relic, all present in the parade, kiss the silver reliquary containing a small bone of the skull belonged to the Santa, soon after will be exposed together with the statue for his devotion.
The male confraternity instituted only recently with the purpose of continuing the cult of St. Anne, during the solemn pontifical, honored with the chestnut dress bordered with gold and a large monogram embroidered behind the shoulders, will make the floral tribute offered by the firm “Art des Fleurs” at the simulacrum of the Santa Patrona, at the same time a shot of “castagnole” will be carried out outside the Basilica.
In the late afternoon, the drummers with the characteristic percussion instruments will open the event with their commotion, the “bearers” will carry the simulacrum in procession through the main streets of the country with the joy of all the faithful citizens, the image will come and it will bring hope and love to those faithful who are unable to walk.
Upon his return to the Basilica a superb pyrotechnic tribute with musical games will rise from the ancient residence of the Filangeri to conclude an impressive triumph for the Mother Saint Anne.