With its Black Madonna, labyrinth, and its legend of an ancient Black Madonna under the earth Guingamp, Brittany competed for centuries with Chartres, 400 km to the East. To this day it honors its Lady of Good Help with festivities known as ‘the Pardon of Our Lady’. Unlike in Chartres, there is no whitening the Black Madonna or covering the labyrinth with chairs or slacking off of devotion here!

Miracle working Our Lady of Laghet near Nice and Monte-Carlo in a retreat center run by Catholic nuns. The dark copy in the crypt reminiscent of the original Black Madonna

Notre Dame de la Roche in Mayres near Clermont Ferrand, whom Dr. Cleveland calls Our Lady of the Side-Eye. 14th century statue commemorating the vision of a 12 C monk. Is she rolling her eyes at White patriarchs or what? Anybody have a better picture please?

I believe the “Black Virgin of Menton” is a copy of the Black Madonna of Montserrat, her famous sister venerated 700 km to the South. For the centuries, the faithful wouldn’t hesitate to walk that far in search for a miraculous healing. Once they were granted their wish, they would give public thanks with an ex-voto, a painting commemorating the miracle. That’s what we are looking at here.

The Romanesque Black Madonna of Myans became famous when she stopped a giant avalanche of rocks at the door step of her church, where a group of Franciscan monks had taken refuge after getting kicked out of their abbey.