Our Lady of the Cave

Infiesto · Piloña (Asturias)

On the outskirts of Infiesto, under a large rock by the river, the shrine of the Virgin of the Cave is one of the most unique of Asturias; the villa of Piloña "makes its" holiday of September 8.

Origin and history

The first secure historical data of the sanctuary was from the 16th century; at the end of the 18th century the enclosure gathered several chapels (of the Carmen, of the Christ and the primitive of the Virgin of the Cave). After his brotherhood disappeared, he was abandoned for a while, and in the 20th century he was thoroughly rebuilt, keeping his peculiar location under the great rock. The image is a polychrome size of the 18th century, about 45 cm, inside the cave.

The tradition places the origin of the cult in the Reconquist (X-XI centuries): the Lord of the Tower of Lodeña would have appeared in dreams asking him to worship in that place, where he found a hermit who already venerated it; it is legendary story. The devotion is very close to the popular life of Piloña, with the feast of September 8, the offering of the Avellana Festival and a sprinkler mass; tradition also associates it with the well-known song "It rains, it rains, the Virgin of the Cave."

Formal patronage and canonical coronation: no record.