The painting, venerated in the small church of Valle Aurelia in Rome, bears witness to the pastoral action of the Guanellians in that Roman village
by Don Gabriele Cantaluppi
Pa few kilometers from the Vatican, Valle Aurelia is an urban area of the XIII Municipio of Rome Capital and has always been called the “Valley of Hell”. Initially the term indicated the location: lower valley, that is, below, inferior. Then, to strengthen the name, war actions were added due to the fury of the Lanzichenecchi who in 1527, during the famous Sack of Rome, in this place massacred the papal troops, which was a real "hell".
Finally, in times closer to us, numerous kilns arose, which remained in operation until the 1920s, used for the production of brick material, which exploited the clay extracted from the quarries of the nearby area, called Monti di Creta. The kiln workers, mostly of Venetian origin, formed a local community linked to the hard work that was carried out there, but also with its own recreational and political structures. Over time, the meadows all around became neighborhoods and the valley today has an appearance characterized by twelve-story popular buildings.
Don Luigi Guanella, coming from the church of San Giuseppe al Trionfale, at the request of Pope Pius X, began pastoral care there in the summer of 1905, starting an apostolate with his nuns that changed the mentality of the inhabitants, averse to religion more for the harshness of daily life than for ill will. He started a nursery with eighty children in a rented apartment, which the nuns reached, with about an hour's walk every day, coming from the Ricovero Pio X near the Basilica of San Pancrazio. In 1921 Don Luigi Previtali, parish priest of San Giuseppe al Trionfale, built a small church with a small bell tower, dedicating it to the Madonna della Provvidenza and almost immediately annexing the nursery, an elementary school and the women's voluntary associations, among which the Ladies of San Vincenzo stood out.
On December 10, 1962, Cardinal Vicar Clemente Micara elevated the church to a parish, separating it from that of San Giuseppe al Trionfale, and in 1979, with Cardinal Vicar Ugo Poletti, the new parish church was inaugurated, dedicated to San Giuseppe Benedetto Cottolengo; the Servants of Charity remained there until 2006, and the diocese of Rome took over. The old church in the small village, however, remained in the hearts of the inhabitants and continues to be a meeting point for Sunday Mass.
Inside, on the wall behind the altar, there is an oval-shaped oil painting on canvas by an unknown artist, enclosed in a frame, with characteristics that recall the late Renaissance and Baroque pictorial tradition, although, observing the execution technique and the state of conservation, its creation would seem to date back to the 19th century. It represents the image of the Madonna of Divine Providence, a copy of the one venerated in the church of San Carlo a' Catinari in Rome, to which Don Guanella dedicated his nuns, calling them Daughters of Santa Maria della Provvidenza. The Virgin Mary is depicted with her head slightly inclined and with a sweet and maternal expression, while she holds the Child in her arms, with a tender movement, almost an image of the Providence that the Father has for all of us, his children.
The work is embellished with some gold alloy jewels, votive offerings donated by the faithful, and a golden crown of twelve stars, which recall the iconography of the Immaculate Conception. The refined goldsmith workmanship bears witness to the tradition rooted in Italy, especially in the South, of enriching sacred images with votive offerings donated by the faithful out of devotion or to request protection. In this way, these devotional works also offer a precious testimony of faith, as well as of artisanal skill, in which art and spirituality intertwine, strengthening the bond with the community of devotees. This is also why the initiative to recover the sacred image, proposed by the parish priest Don Giacomo Pavanello and supported by Don Cosimo Schiavone, a Guanellian priest who exercises his pastoral ministry in the small church, immediately found convinced support among the faithful.
In the months between 2024 and this year, the painting and the wooden frame, which were seriously damaged, were restored. The work was carried out by restorer Elena Cianca, specialized in the Professionalizing Training Course, while the jewels were restored by restorer Clarissa Pilato. At the end, the professionals presented a detailed technical report on the composition of the work, its state of conservation and the restoration techniques. It was discovered that the work had previously undergone restoration work and some of its parts had been repainted. Therefore, cleaning required great care in choosing the appropriate solutions, both in the products to be used and in the execution techniques.
Even if it is not appropriate to report here the detailed particulars, described in the scientific report, with technical terms used by experts, the restoration was carried out with the seriousness and responsibility that the work required. This is stated by the restorers who in their report declare that not all possible interventions were carried out, to safeguard the canvas from the risk of damage, having to dismantle or modify some parts of the work. They write: «It is hoped that this technical restoration documentation can be handed down to posterity and constitute a useful reference for subsequent conservation interventions».