Immaculate Conception statue of Mary
Patronato de San Xavier, “Moving Mary” will be presented by Craig Reid, Mission Docent, on Monday, February 20, 2017, at 6:30 p.m. in the Madera Clubhouse Crystal Ballroom.
This program has been developed to highlight San Xavier Mission’s restoration of the Immaculate Conception statue of Mary. The effort resulted in several national news stories about development of a process to safely remove and restore the statue from November 2015 to September 2016. The program called “Moving Mary” highlights the efforts to remove the statue from its high point inset in the altar, months of restoration, then the return of the statue to the church. This is the first time it was removed from the altar since the early 1900s. Mary was standing on two loose boards and two rocks inside the inset and was in danger of falling out of the altar if a better way to secure the statue in the small space could not be found. The statue was in bad shape with major cracks, broken parts and animal nests on the back and inside the statue. Movement of such a fragile object located over 35 feet in the air took a team of restoration experts, builders and volunteers from around the area, several from Quail Creek. The program will also talk of the earrings worn by Mary and their earlier recovery effort.
Slides showing restoration work and a short video showing the movement and interviews with the two restorers who led the project will be presented by Docent Craig Reid from Patronato de San Xavier.
There is no charge for attendance.