The Madonnina

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Known as the greatest rivalry in German football, the battle between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke has existed for almost 100 years. Like Manchester United and Liverpool, the two clubs have long battled for supremacy in Germany's industrial Ruhr region. The answer is provided by Google, who tells me that the meaning of the inscription is “We bless you and your city”. It is a quote from a letter the Virgin Mary sent to the population of Messina in the year 42. A Letter from Virgin Mary The Duomo’s archive and the library are home to annals tracing the cathedral's history between 1387 and 1875. There’s also a photograph archive, a collection of early blueprints and the Music Chapel's complete archive. But where to start? Here are some of our recommended restaurants to head to for any occasion and budget. The project of the Main Spire has involved, from 1490 to this day, high-level ingenuity and professionalism, coming from the likes of Leonardo da Vinci, Francesco di Giorgio Martini, Amadeo, Dolcebuono, Francesco Croce, Pietro Pestagalli and Carlo Ferrari da Passano. Complex architecture and a centuries-long history defines the Main Spire, whose repair today is carried out by a team of skilled marble workers, masons, and scaffolders engaged in the consolidation of the eight, large corner pillars; in the repair of marble damaged over time and still bearing the deep wounds of the 1943 bombings; in the protection and repair of the iron bindings, wisely put in place five centuries ago to withhold the stresses on the base caused by the weight of this incredible bolt of lightning reaching up to the sky.

If the Duomo is the symbol of Milan in the world, the Madonnina, perched on the highest spire of the Cathedral, represents the heart and soul of the city. The city of Milan has a millenial history. Founded by the Celts who, according to a legend, decided to build a new town where they saw a pig just for a half covered in hair. It was the scrofa semilanuta and that particular wild animal became the symbol of the city. It remained as a landamrk of Milan till the Middle Ages when it was replaced by the embleme of the Sforza Family. A bas-relief of the scrofa can still be seen engraved in Piazza Mercanti. This rivalry came to a head when they both reached the Copa Libertadores final in 2018, South America's equivalent of the Champions League. The second leg of the tie was abandoned and moved to Madrid due to safety fears, which says everything. The Museum collects and preserves ancient vestments, from the 18th and 19th centuries, donated over the years to the Sanctuary of the Madonna delle Lacrime and a beautiful collection of nativity scenes of various workmanship and origins. The first evidence of a possible laying of the statue of the Virgin Mary on top of the Great Spire is found in a drawing by architect Cesare Cesariano dated 1521, where a central spire surmounted by a statue of the Madonna appears.A new extraordinary opportunity created thanks to the support of Intesa Sanpaolo, to share the fascination of the place that is symbol of Milan in the world. In August 1939, on the eve of the last World War, the Madonnina was covered with a grey-green cloth and it remained so for five years, to avoid providing an easy target to bombers. The removal of the cloth took place on 6 May 1945 with a solemn ceremony presided by Cardinal Schuster, the then Archbishop of Milan. Now we're talking. Celtic and Rangers have battled to be Scotland's premier club since 1888, with Celtic winning 53 league titles (and one European Cup) and Rangers claiming 55. To put this into perspective, no other team in Scotland has won more than four titles.

In the Crypt there are several chapels. The Chapel of the Sacred Heart houses the Blessed Sacrament. The mosaic represents the apparition of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to St. Margherita Alacoque. Everything is wrapped up in a colorful vortex that converges in the golden diamond-shaped Tabernacle. When this derby was played, Milan had only won three league titles. Their fans had expected them to challenge in 1949-50 but they had started the campaign poorly, losing to Juventus and drawing with Como and Lazio in the build-up to their meeting with Inter. It was time to show what they could do. The Catholic Church has not yet expressed officially their thoughts about theweeping Madonna of Civitavecchia and still the public opinion is strongly divided between skeptics and believers.

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But among all 3,400 statues, the Duomo’s - and arguably the city’s - most revered figure is the golden representation of Mary, endearingly called the Madonnina (Little Madonna). Measuring four metres high and completely covered in gold, the Madonnina stands at the highest point of the Duomo’s roof and looks over the city asserting her role as the protector of the Milanese people.