The Institution of the Rosary

Fresco
Church of St. Vitus, Rome

The Christ Child gives a rosary to St. Dominic while his mother gives another to St. Catherine of Siena. It was believed that the Rosary prayer was entrusted to Dominic by the Virgin Mary in a vision.

The two saints are in their usual Dominican habits. The words ave maria on the dais are Latin for "Hail Mary." The roses are conventional symbols of Mary.

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Photographed at the church by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.