Shrine of Our Lady of Bonaria

Mary under this Marian title, is often portrayed carrying the Child Jesus, along with a golden sailboat and a candle in her right arm is invoked as the Patroness of Sardinia as well as Buenos Aires, Argentina, to which Pope Francis is also a known devotee.

On March 25, 1370, a ship coming from Spain was traveling towards Italy when it was seized by a terrible storm that put the lives of the crew and passengers at risk.

When the Catalans by name of the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona conquered Cagliari, Sardinia from the Pisans in 1324, they established their headquarters on top of a hill that overlooked the city.

The hill was known to them as Bon Ayre (or "Bonaria" in Sardinian language), as it was free of the foul smell prevalent in the old city (the Castle area), which is adjacent to swampland.

Two centuries later, Spanish sailors, especially Andalusians, venerated this image and frequently invoked the "Fair Winds" to aid them in their navigation and prevent shipwrecks.

On that solemn occasion, the Pontiff granted a canonical coronation to the famed image, and bestowed the honor of a Golden Rose on the shrine.