"This church was built at Rome, on Mount Esquiline, in the fourth century during the pontificate of Pope Liberius. A popular tradition ascribed its foundation to a noble patrician who, having been favored with a vision of Mary, caused it to be erected on a spot covered by a miraculous fall of snow.
This sanctuary was rebuilt and dedicated by [Pope] Sixtus III in 432, to Mary, whom the Council of Ephesus (431) had just proclaimed the Mother of God. The mosaics of the triumphal arch, restored in 1931-1934, glorify this divine maternity. The Basilica is also called "St. Mary of the Crib" because portions of the crib are preserved there, and "St. Mary Major" because it is the most important church in Rome dedicated to the Blessed Virgin. The ceiling is covered with the first gold brought to Rome from America."
Source: St. Andrew Daily Missal; copyright 1949, page 823; Imprimatur: Samuel Cardinalis Stritch; Nihil Obstat: J. Gerald Kealy, D.D.
Photo by Chandler Cruttenden