Basilica of Our Lady of Las Lajas

In 1754, an Indian mother and her deaf-mute daughter Rosa were caught in a strong storm and sought refuge in a canyon between the lajas. Rosa exclaimed with her first words "the mestiza is calling me," describing the figures of a woman and child. When returning later, the mother saw an apparition of Our Lady and Child. Some months later, Rosa died but returned to life when her mother prayed again at the cave. When the townspeople came to see, a miraculous image was burned into the rocks. In the image, the Madonna presents a rosary to St. Dominic, keeling at her right. Jesus gives a cord to St. Francis, kneeling to his left. Testing has shown the image to be of indeterminate origin. Geologists from Germany bored core samples from several spots in the image. There is no paint, no dye, nor any other pigment on the surface of the rock. The colors are the colors of the rock itself and run uniformly to a depth of several feet.