Madonna della Sciara Festival

A festival born from the lava of Mount Etna

The Madonna della Sciara Festival is the main religious event in Mascalucia, a town in the Metropolitan City of Catania, Sicily. It takes place in the hamlet of Mompileri, on the south-eastern slopes of Mount Etna. The name itself tells its origin: "sciara" is the Sicilian term for solidified lava flow, and it is from this lava that the history of this sanctuary is born.

On March 12, 1669, a violent eruption of Mount Etna completely buried the ancient church of the Virgin Annunziata in Mompileri. However, popular devotion did not fade: thirty-five years later, on August 8, 1704, while digging about forty palms deep under the lava rock, the intact marble statue of the Madonna delle Grazie, attributed to the great sculptor Antonello Gagini, was found. From that discovery, considered miraculous, the cult of the Madonna della Sciara took shape.

The rites of the festival

The celebration is concentrated on the third Sunday of August, preceded by festivities for the anniversary of the sanctuary's canonical erection. The most evocative moment is the Saturday evening vigil: at the end of the solemn mass, as night falls, the Sacred Grotto is opened to retrieve the statue and carry it in procession to the sanctuary.

• Evening vigil with the opening of the Sacred Grotto
• Pilgrimages from the parish communities of the Etna region
• Solemn holy masses throughout the festival day
• Final candlelight procession and solemn entry of the statue into the sanctuary

The Sanctuary of Mompileri

The Sanctuary of the Madonna della Sciara in Mompileri, an archdiocesan sanctuary of the Archdiocese of Catania, is a destination for pilgrimages all year round. The Sacred Grotto, carved into the lava, preserves the site of the discovery and is the spiritual heart of the complex. In 2025, the sanctuary was designated a jubilee site for the Jubilee, welcoming numerous pilgrims from all over Sicily.