Albox takes to the road again for La Pequeñica: first pilgrimage to the renovated Saliente sanctuary
Hundreds of pilgrims walked almost 20 kilometres to the Saliente to honour La Pequeñica in the first romería (pilgrimage) since Albox's sanctuary was renovated.
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Albox has once again taken to the road to meet La Pequeñica, and this year with a special incentive: its sanctuary, newly renovated. Hundreds of pilgrims walked the almost 20 kilometres separating the town centre from the Saliente Sanctuary to experience the romería (pilgrimage) in honour of Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados del Buen Retiro del Saliente Coronada, patron saint and perpetual mayor of the municipality, whose big day was last Tuesday, 8 September, as reported by La Voz de Almería.
Pilgrims from all over the district
The sanctuary opened its doors on Monday afternoon and, during the night, held Masses for pilgrims who had come from Vélez-Rubio, Vélez-Blanco, María and other towns in Los Vélez, as well as the midnight rosary and the procession with La Pequeñica’s Simpecado (processional banner), according to the programme released by the Diocese of Almería. On Tuesday itself, one celebration followed another for groups from Oria, Purchena, Cantoria, Albánchez, Líjar, Cóbdar, Chercos, Sierro, Somontín, Suflí and Urrácal, among other villages.
Then came the central moment: the solemn Mass at 12:00, presided over by the abbot of the Sacromonte in Granada, Antonio Fernández Siles, and the subsequent bringing down of the image from its camarín (shrine chamber) for the procession of praise across the Roel esplanade, accompanied by the Albox Municipal Music Band. The day passed off without incident thanks to an operation involving the local police, the Guardia Civil (Spain’s Civil Guard), Civil Protection and municipal workers.
A renovated sanctuary
This romería was also the first since the reopening of the church and the unveiling, last Sunday, of its new decoration. The painter Andrés García Ibáñez is the artist behind the dome, the three apses and around forty large-format works, a project documented in the book Signum Magnum, nearly 500 pages long, which was presented on Friday 4 September in the Plaza Mayor.
The paintings have also sparked a debate in the town. As reported by Teleprensa, some residents have expressed their displeasure because, in their view, local political leaders are among the contemporary figures in the paintings. The artist has explained that the iconographic programme was not decided by him alone and that it was supervised and directed from within the Church.
With the church renovated, the Saliente opens a new chapter as a religious, cultural and heritage landmark for the district, and remains the place that thousands of devotees from Albox, the rest of the Almanzora and neighbouring provinces look to every September.
