The small church of Querciola is located away from the town of Conflenti, on a small hill in the middle of the woods, in the Serra Campanara area. The main facade, made of exposed stone, features a portal with a round arch and a window above to illuminate the nave, topped by a tympanum. On the right rises the two-level bell tower, partly in exposed stone and partly plastered. The interior consists of a single nave with a semicircular apse, separated by a lowered triumphal arch. On the sides, there are blind arches adorned with frescoes depicting episodes from the Gospels related to the Virgin Mary. In the apse wall, a tree is embedded, above which towers a fresco of the Virgin Mary among angels, symbolizing the apparition of the Madonna of the Oak of Visora, venerated in Conflenti.

Historical sources mention a “baraccone,” likely a simple and rather improvised structure. The first building was probably a modest single-nave church, integrated with chapels and additional rooms to accommodate chaplains. This church underwent major transformations in 1760. Of this second intervention, only the three naves remain today. The other elements (the two choirs, the sacristy, the bell tower, the colonnade, the churchyard) belong to another intervention carried out in the 20th century.

**Description:** Small rectangular painting depicting the Madonna and Child.
**In use since:** 1581
**Image:** Painting
**Description:** Oak tree
**In use since:** 1578
**Location:** Tree
**Original location of the Sanctuary:** Side chapels
**Types of ex-votos:** Lights, Goldsmith objects, Various objects

In 1579, the Bishop of Martirano, Perbenedetto, formally tasked the notary N. Baratta to travel through Calabria and compile a volume of testimonies about the miracles performed in Conflenti by the Madonna of the Oak of Visora.

**1578** (general founding date)
After the multiple apparitions of the Virgin Mary in 1578 in Conflenti, on the current site where the small church of Querciola stands, several sacred shrines were erected. One of these enclosed a large smoothed stone shaped like a foot, believed to be the footprint of the Virgin.

At the time of its founding, the sanctuary fell under the diocese of Martirano, established by the Normans in 1054. In 1818, this diocese was suppressed, and its territory was merged with the diocese of Nicastro.

– In 1581, the painter Muzio Roblani from Messina was commissioned by the people of Conflenti to create a painting of the Virgin Mary. The painting he produced did not please the townspeople. On the morning of July 9, the current divine painting with an image of the Blessed Virgin was found in the church. Following this miracle, the painting was placed in a niche above the altar. On October 5, 1726, there was a report of the painting emitting a ray of light. Numerous apparitions of the Virgin Mary occurred.

**Key Dates:**
– **June 7, 1578** – First apparition of the Virgin Mary
– **June 14, 1578** – Apparition of the Virgin Mary
– **June 23, 1578** – Apparition of the three patron saints of Conflenti
– **July 1, 1578** – Apparition of the Virgin Mary (beginning of worship under the oak tree)
– **September 1578** – Construction of the first building (“baraccone”)
– **August 25, 1578** – Construction of the actual church with attached structures for chaplains
– **October 13, 1580** – Foundation bull of the sanctuary
– **1581** – Miracle of the divine painting
– **1607** – Consecration as a basilica
– **1760** – Expansion of the sanctuary
– **1769–1772** – Diplomas from King Ferdinand IV of Naples recognizing the lay status of the sanctuary

**Ecclesiastical Decrees:**
– **August 26, 1607** – Episcopal Bull
– **September 26, 1778** – Plenary indulgence granted by Pope Pius VI
– **November 28, 1778** – “Toties quoties” indulgence
– **May 9, 1780**
– **September 28, 1782** – Indulgence granted by Pope Pius VII for those visiting the sanctuary
Before Pius VI, other indulgences had been granted by Pope Sixtus VI.
– **July 15, 1900** – During restoration works, Bishop Valenzise granted a 50-day indulgence.
– **August 27, 1971** – A 100-day indulgence was granted by the bishop.

The sanctuary was a suffragan of the cathedral of Martirano. The foundation bull established perpetual chaplaincies. The four chaplains were granted the same honors, privileges, and prerogatives as the canons of Martirano. One of them also had the additional prerogative of serving as chaplain in the sanctuary, effectively sealing the bishop’s authority over it.

88040 San Mazzeo CZ, Italy