Anecdotes about the Virgin Mary

"Mary Undoer of the Knots of Augsburg"

Augsburg (Germany) (ca. 1700)

In the church of San Pedro am Perlach, in Augsburg, a baroque picture is preserved that has moved the whole world: Mary who unleashes the knots, the Mary Knotenlöserin. In him, the Immaculate, surrounded by angels, takes a long ribbon full of knots and unfolds them with patience, as he steps on the head of the serpent. These knots, the popular piety says, are the problems, sins, family conflicts and the inner ties that are so hard on us.

Tradition tells that the image originated from a marriage in crisis: a priest supposedly asked the Virgin to "untie the knots" of their union, and the couple reconciled. This is the most frequently repeated anecdote, a symbol of reconciliation and hope; however, it should be read as a devotional tradition, since there is no primary documentation to verify it.

Let us distinguish between the two. The existence of the Baroque painting in San Pietro am Perlach and its attribution to the painter Johann Georg Melchior Schmidtner are solidly documented, with a usual date of around 1700, although some references cite 1687, though this is not unanimous. The great modern expansion of this devotion in the 20th century, especially in Latin America, is also well attested, greatly promoted by then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, later Pope Francis, who became acquainted with it during his time in Europe and disseminated it from Argentina. However, there is insufficient documentary evidence regarding specific votive offerings or miracles, and a detailed founding chronology.

The connection with the Rosary is devotional, not structural: the invocation is often prayed in contexts of Marian prayer and the Rosary, and its language—Mary united to Christ, trusted intercessor—is very close to that of the Rosary. But there is no record of a specific historical relationship with a Rosary confraternity or rite.