Who among the people of Córdoba, believers or not, has not marveled at the beauty of the face of the image of the Virgin of Solitude in our cathedral church? Who has not felt her sorrow as their own—the grief reflected in her expression, the anguish in her tear-stained eyes, still glistening with tears, without diminishing her profound beauty?

Although she is known as the Virgin of Solitude, she is also a Sorrowful Virgin—the one who has just lost her only son and is consumed by grief, a pain that deepens the solitude she has been left in. Her image is also shrouded in mystery, as her origin has given rise to much speculation and, above all, to legend.The legend tells that around the year 1675, during the time of Don Juan de Ortega, parish priest of the Church of the Immaculate Conception, two young men arrived, claiming to be sculptors of Central American origin seeking help or work. They had heard that the priest was considering acquiring some religious images.

 Impressed by their polite manners and their serious yet humble appearance, as well as the fact that they carried themselves with great confidence, the priest hired them to carve three images: the Sacred Heart of Jesus, San Jose, and the Virgin in her suffering form, known as the Sorrowful or Virgin of Solitude. They agreed that they would receive the materials, an advance payment, and their meals. Additionally, a room would be prepared for them, serving both as a workshop and a bedroom, with one condition: they requested not to be disturbed.Mr. priest, and the housekeeper of the priest would bring their meals, leaving them at the door.

Thus, a short time passed, and one day the elderly woman who brought them their meals noticed that the breakfast was still where she had left it. She was even more surprised when, that night, she brought their dinner and found all the plates untouched. Alarmed, she went to call the priest, who hurried over, fearing the worst as he traveled—perhaps they had run off with the money, maybe they had stolen something, since it had been too little time to have finished even one of the statues.When they finally managed to open the heavy door to the room—which is thought to be the one next to the Tabernacle of our cathedral—and found it locked from the inside, they were met with the immense surprise that the workers had vanished. The food, untouched and still fresh, sat on the table. On the workbench was the money given as an advance, and in the middle of the room, three large bundles covered with sheets.

When they discovered the figures, they found exquisite and perfect carvings of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Saint Joseph—though some say that the statue of Saint Joseph is actually the beautiful sculpture of Saint Anthony found in his church. However, their astonishment reached its peak when they discovered, in the middle of the room, the image of the Sorrowful Mary—the vivid portrait of a mother whose heart has just been pierced by the sharpest of swords, a mother who captivates us with her beautiful face framed by grief. Immediately, they fell to their knees before her, unable to stop gazing in awe at the tears flowing from her reddened eyes, at her hands crossed on her chest in prayer and anguish. She was a mother, our mother, weighed down by sorrow. No one ever knew what happened to the sculptors or how they managed to leave. This story became a legend, passed from mouth to mouth.

 From that moment on, the people flocked to see her, placing their trust and seeking her protection. It was then that events began to unfold in which her miraculous intervention took place as a protective mother, shielding the town from the plague, or like that time during the defense of the Villa de Córdoba in 1821, when the guard corporal, who was in charge of guarding the weapons and gunpowder, fell asleep with a candle burning over a barrel of gunpowder he believed to be empty. In his dreams, he recalled a beautiful woman dressed in an elegant black gown, who extinguished the candle with her hands, thus preventing a catastrophe. There was also the time when Hurricane Janet threatened at the beginning of the 20th century. The storm’s path was diverted, sparing Córdoba while wreaking havoc in the surrounding areas. At the same time, a female figure dressed in black was seen walking through the city. It is said that a few days later, when the image was moved, the nuns and ladies who relocated it discovered that the hem of her cloak and dress were stained with fresh mud.

Many, countless are the stories and testimonies of the protection that the Virgin of Solitude has provided and continues to provide to Córdoba and its people. For this reason, thousands of faithful accompany her in pursuit of her, sharing in her sorrow each Viernes Santo during the heartfelt Procession of Silence.