Ghiara Blessed Virgin Church

Address and contacts

Corso Garibaldi, 44 - 42121 Reggio nell'Emilia
0039 0522 439707
Basilica della Madonna della Ghiara
GiraReggio
Basilica Madonna della Ghiara

Opening times

Individual tours
Monday - Saturday 10.00 a.m. - 12.00 / 4.30 p.m. - 5.30 p.m.
Sunday and holiday 4.30 - 5.30 p.m.

Individual tours are free. It is possible to ak for the tourist illumination upon request at the sacristy with a minimum offer of € 5.00.

Collective tours with or without guide
In order to book tours or pilgrimages please contact the Community of the Servants of Mary (  0039 0522 439707) or the Tourist Office ( 0039 0522 451152). The date and the visiting times will be agreed on the occasion of the reservation. Minimum offer of € 1.00 per adult.

Ghiara Church App
Discover the Church on your own! Thanks to the new application (free) and the QR codes placed around the inner pillars of the church, it will be possible to study the historical/artistic details of the church and look at the paintings from a different point of view. Discover more!

Holy Masses

Weekdays
7.30 a.m.
9.00 a.m.
6.30 p.m.

Sunday and holidays
7.30 a.m. 
9.30 a.m.
11.30 a.m.
6.30 p.m.
8.30 p.m.

How to get there

Reggio nell'Emilia - Town centre

The church is located in the town centre. It is possible to reach it by bus No. 6 or No. 4 and by Minibu G.

Historical notes

The construction of the Basilica is linked to the miracle which occurred on 29 April 1596 when the young Marchino, deaf and dumb from birth, was miraculously given the powers of speech and hearing while praying before an image of the Madonna painted by Bertone. In that spot, to the left of the church, today there is a marble memorial. The church's design is attributed to the Architect, Alessandro Balbi from Ferrara; it was built by Pacchioni Francesco from Reggio, who began construction in 1597. A peculiarity of the Basilica is the extraordinary series of frescoes and altar pieces executed by the best artists of 17th century Emilia: Ludovico Carracci, Gianfrancesco Barbieri (The Guercino), Lionello Spada, Alessandro Tiarini, Carlo Bononi and Luca Ferrari. The art guilds made valuable contributions: the stoup from the wool and silk craft guilds; the Municipality commissioned a work from Guercino which is held to be his masterpiece: the "Crucifixion of Christ with, at his feet, the Madonna and the Saints, Mary Magdalen, St. John and St. Prospero". Not to be missed: the room holding the holy vestments and fabrics from the 16th to the 19th century; the Ghiara's treasures are composed of relics, monstrances, chalices, highly valuable votive offerings. Finally, the museum in which, among the precious items on show, there is Lelio Orsi's original design which inspired Bertone's fresco, and the crown donated by the Reggio Civic Committee to the Madonna.

To illuminate the vaults, please ask the sacristy.