Feast of the Immaculate Conception

Have you done your visit to Our Lady? What flowers did you offer in her statue? 

For today’s #WildlifeWednesday, your #NationalMuseumPH features several flowers associated with the Blessed Virgin Mary in commemoration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception for the Catholics.

It has been a tradition by many Roman Catholics to offer flowers in the statues of the Blessed Virgin Mary to celebrate the divine conception without sin but did you know that there are a number of flowers and herbs that represent her traits and divinity?

The most common one is the rose (Rosa sp.) which is usually worn as a crown by saints with its thorns representing the “Original Sin”. The Blessed Virgin Mary is called the “rose without thorns” or the “Mystical Rose”. Lily (Lilium sp.) also signifies her purity, innocence and virginity while the blue color of the periwinkle (Vinca sp.) known as the “Virgin flower”, represents the color of her clothes. The Lady’s Slipper (Cypripedium sp.) which has a shaped of a small slipper has two interpretations – the first one is that the flower has first sprang forth at the touch of Mary’s foot while the other interpretation is that it symbolizes the graceful Visitation trip of Mary to Elizabeth. 

Text by NMP Botany and National Herbarium Division

Photo from www.phytoimages.siu.edu/ (Mihai Costea)