- Czestochowa, Poland (OSV News).
While the famous image of Our Lady of Częstochowa is known throughout the world, its history is full of dramatic events that are worth recognizing.
From legends about the origin of the wood on which the "Black Madonna" was written - icons are 'written', not painted - to the reason why the image is marked. The icon reflects the historical destiny of Poland and is a spiritual refuge for Catholics from all corners of the world.
Origins of the icon of Our Lady
The date of creation of the icon is uncertain, and art historians believe it to be a Byzantine icon from the 6th or 9th century or from the 12th-15th century. It is known to have been brought to the Jasna Góra monastery in the 14th century.
However, legend attributes it to St. Luke, who allegedly wrote the icon on the table where the Holy Family dined. "Legend has it that the Jasna Góra icon was created on a table in the home of the Holy Family," Father Michal Legan, a Pauline priest from Jasna Góra, told OSV News.
"Today we know that this is not true. But we can easily imagine that this icon has an impact on the life of Polish families and families all over the world. Because it hangs in practically every Polish home, somewhere where families gather and pray," noted Father Legan, who heads the Catholic newsroom of Polish television.
Hidden during World War II occupation of Poland
In fact, a huge library table is the piece of furniture that helped save Our Lady from the horrors of the Nazi German occupation of Poland.
The outbreak of war posed a serious threat to Jasna Góra. The German Nazis understood the deep religious and cultural significance of the icon of Our Lady of Częstochowa. There was a real danger that the painting would be seized, destroyed or sold to private collectors.
Faced with this threat, the Pauline monks took a bold step. They hid the icon in a specially prepared compartment on top of one of the tables in the Jasna Góra library. Its monumental size and unpretentious appearance ensured that the priceless treasure would go unnoticed.
In the old Library, two masterpieces
The Old Library in Jasna Góra houses two unique tables crafted in the 1730s by Brother Grzegorz Woźniakowicz. They are masterpieces of wood carving and marquetry, richly decorated with scenes of saints and made of a variety of woods with Baroque-level craftsmanship.
Their design was not only decorative, but also practical. The tables were built as individual, non-detachable units, so heavy and monumental that it was physically impossible to remove them from the library. This feature proved crucial in protecting the icon of the Black Madonna during the war.
At one point, the Nazi occupiers of Poland planned to transport the tables to Dresden in Germany as valuable works of art. As the threat intensified, the icon was moved again, this time walled up in a monastery cell. It survived the darkest years of the war, although subsequent moves caused some damage that required restoration later.
A "symbolic ark", such as an heirloom, a shield
Although the icon did not spend the entire war inside the table, its role remains significant. It was the first hiding place, a symbolic "ark" intended to protect the spiritual treasure of the nation. Today, the table is treated as a historical relic. Almost as valuable as the rare books and manuscripts that surround it in the library.
"There is a beautiful symbolism in the fact that the icon, which according to legend was painted on the table of the Holy Family, was hidden during World War II from the Germans. Precisely on one of the most beautiful tables that can be found in Poland and Europe," said Father Legan.
A Pauline priest who showed the table to OSV News described it as "not just a piece of furniture," but rather as "a shield, a refuge and protection." And he noted that "without the brothers' decision" to hide it, "who knows what would have happened to the painting?"
Scars of the 15th century
However, the image did not escape damage over the centuries, with scars dating back to the 15th century that make the "Black Madonna" one of the most famous Marian images in the world.
In 1430, thieves attacked the monastery at Easter, cutting and breaking the image in the Chapel of Our Lady. King Władysław Jagiełłło ordered its restoration. And painters reassembled and repainted the panel, although conservation methods were poor. The scars are still visible, either because attempts to cover them failed or, as tradition holds, they were deliberately left as a reminder of the attack.
It is also Our Lady's appearance that makes her unique, Father Legan told OSV News. "According to St. John Chrysostom, an icon is not meant to be looked at and admired, but rather for the person depicted in the icon to be able to look at you," he said. "It is about God's gaze, which is full of goodness and does not judge, and the gaze of the Blessed Mother, which also allows us to discover our dignity."
Queen of Poland, venerated by faithful from many countries
While Our Lady of Częstochowa is primarily the "Queen of Poland," her importance extends beyond the country. The icon has been venerated for centuries by faithful from other nations. In 2024 alone, more than 4 million pilgrims visited the Jasna Góra shrine, a place of beloved spiritual refuge for many Polish saints, including St. John Paul II.
A special shrine in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, nicknamed "American Częstochowa," has been run by the Pauline Fathers since the 1950s. It has become a place of pilgrimage for Polish diaspora communities and others seeking spiritual guidance, a reflection of Jasna Góra across the Atlantic.
