On the late snowy afternoon of January 17, 1797, 18-year-old Rosina Buecher of Austria sat by the window, sewing. Looking up from her work, she was surprised to see a face etched onto the window. The face was clear and unmistakable and seemed to have appeared on its own.
Rosina called for her mother, and both looked into the glass, concluding that it must be an image of the Virgin Mary, specifically Our Lady of Sorrows. In the image, May's head was tilted to the side and a teardrop was falling from the right eye.
Rosina's mother alerted neighbors and the parish priest, who all came to the Buecher home to see the image for themselves. Why the image appeared seemed to be the greatest question. Rosina's mother believed it to be a bad omen of things to come- both Rosina's father and son worked dangerous jobs in the salt mines, and Mrs. Buecher was constantly worried for their safety. The priest and others believed it to be a positive sign that the men would return home - and they did, barely escaping a work-related accident.
Rosina's brother later wrote about the discovery of the image on the window pane:
"On 17th January 1797, my sister, a grown girl (18 years of age) by the name of Rosina was sitting at the table by the window on the ground-floor room sewing. She then – between 3 and 4 o'clock – suddenly looked up and saw what had never been seen before, drawn on a window pane, an image of Mary, the Mother of God. She called to her mother, who was also present, but in another part of the room. Mother hurried over and was initially not a little frightened, when she saw the image of the Holy Virgin, as she thought an accident could have befallen father or myself in the salt-mine where we worked. She said to sister Rosanna that we should pray; and that is what happened. After saying their prayers, the mother wiped the picture with a cloth, because she thought it was steamed up, but look, scarcely had she wiped it off, but it was back just as it was before. The apparition of the image took place on a Tuesday, and on the Thursday me and my father came home perfectly well from the mountain. We looked with joy and amazement at what we had occurred. On 17th January 1797 I was in my 16th year and have retained in my memory everything that happened on that day."
The parish priest had the windowpane removed from the home and sent to experts for examination. The experts cleaned the window and submerged it in water, but it reappeared as soon as it dried. Chemical attempts to test the window with sand and acid didn't alter the image in any way. The image of Our Lady of Sorrows remained permanently on the window.
A commission involving two professors of chemistry, a mathematician, a painter, and two master glaziers was set up from the University of Innsbruck. The attempted applications of chemicals, rubbing, and even a mirror grinder did not erase the image.
Rosina Buecher would later join the convent as a nun. The pane was returned to the Buecher family, but later given to Saint Michael's church on June 24, 1797. Parishioners held a festive procession in reverence of the Virgin, with bells and celebration. Pope John Paul II declared Saint Michael's Church a minor basilica on the 203rd anniversary of the windowpane's official placement in the church, on June 24, 2000.
**Our Lady of Clemency, Mother of Divine Grace, plead with Jesus for us and all who seek God's mercy. Protect us from sin and sorrow in your maternal embrace. Teach us to love Jesus, and all others for the sake of Christ's sorrowful passion. Amen.**
View the Our Lady of Clemency Earrings HERE.
