"Mater Admirabilis"
Pauline Perdreau

In 1844 a novice with the Ladies of the Sacred Heart named Pauline Perdreau (1815-1895) wanted to paint a mural welcoming Mary into their convent. She painted it on the wall of a hallway up past the humble porter's door. The painting grew in popularity because of its charm and beauty, attracting many pilgrims even to this day. Pauline's work became a significant contribution to Christendom, as it is now one of the most famous Catholic paintings ever.

Initially the colors were too bright for the Mother Superior, so the fresco was hidden behind curtains. But Pope Pius IX visited in 1846, and when the curtain was pulled back, he exclaimed Mater Admirablilis! We would say in English, Admirable Mother! The Pope authorized the conversion of the hallway into a chapel. It has been open to the public ever since. It is in the large Trinità dei Monti building at the top of the Spanish Steps in Rome, Italy. Sister Pauline painted many copies of this image over the next several decades, but she always thought this one was the best. (source: trinitadeimonti.net)

** IMPORTANT ** There is about an inch-and-a-third of white space around the picture in the 8.5x11 size, so the IMAGE IS SMALLEER THAN THE PAPER! For 11x14, the border is about 1.6 inches, and for 5x7, the border is about .5 inch. This is because the rectangle of the painting has a different ratio than than rectangles of the various paper sizes.

- Acid-free paper
- Archival pigments, rated to last for generations.
- Cardboard backer
- Above story of the art
- Enclosed in a tight-fitting, crystal clear bag.

Thanks for your interest!
Sue & John

"In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art." ~ St. Pope John Paul II

Original image is out-of-copyright. Descriptive text and image alterations (hence the whole new image) © by Sue Kouma Johnson - Classic Catholic Art. People occasionally question us as to how we can copyright an image in the public domain - We can't. But restoring these pictures can take a week of our time and hundreds of dollars. This one took us about 6 hours to restore. That's what we copyright. Our restored version. It's sometimes called a "sweat equity copyright," and it is protected under U.S. law. The worker is worth his wage!