At the request of the parish rector of the Cathedral of Cosenza, Don Luca Perri, this morning a team of the Fire Brigade from the Cosenza Command intervened at the Cathedral for an operation to move the thirteenth-century icon of the Madonna del Pilerio.
The request for intervention arose in view of the imminent feast of the Madonna del Pilerio, taking into account the constant collaboration between the Fire Brigade Command and the Cosenza Cathedral, as well as in compliance with the requirements of the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape of Cosenza. The icon, of particular historical and religious value, is kept inside a steel and glass climate box with a total weight of 114 kg, located in the niche above the chapel altar. On the occasion of the 450th anniversary of the miracle of the Madonna del Pilerio, which occurred in Cosenza in 1576, and in view of a subsequent study and restoration intervention by the technicians of the Ministry of Culture, it was decided to transfer the image, together with the relative protective structure, to the central nave of the Cathedral.
The removal operation from the niche required specific technical skills, both due to the considerable weight of the structure and the need to guarantee the protection of the eighteenth-century marbles of the altar wall. For these reasons, the intervention of the Fire Brigade was necessary, having already been involved in similar operations on previous occasions.
The activities were carried out in compliance with the safety regulations and the indications of the bodies responsible for the protection of the historical-artistic heritage.