The world famous wax statue is placed in the Church of Our Lady
of Victory in Lesser Town.
The 47 cm high wax statue is of the Spanish origin and was brought
to Bohemia in 1556 by Maria Manrique de Lara, when she married the
Czech Nobleman Vratislav of Perstyn. In 1628, Marie's daughter Polyxena
of Lobkowicz presented the statue to the Carmelites at the Church
of the Our Lady of Victory. However, soon the Carmelites had to
flee from Prague ahead of invading Saxons and Swedes. In 1638 a
young priest named Cyrillus a Matre Dei returned to Prague and found
the demaged statue in the ruins of the church. Fr. Cyril and his
peers had neither the skills to repair the figure themselves, not
the funds to hire it done. When Fr. Cyril asked in prayers for help,
the Divine Infant spoke to him: "Place Me near the entrance
of the sacristy and you will receive aid". Fr. Cyril did, as
he was told and a few days later the statue was fixed by a man who
came by the sacristy.
The Infant Jesus thus became again the object of worship and a number
of miracles were linked to the statue and also the protection of
Prague from the Swedes.
An altar was built for the image in 1641, and the gold and bejewelled
crown on the statue was presented by Bernard Ignatius in 1651. In
1654 a chapel was completed, and the Infant Jesus was coronated
on 4 April 1655. (In memory of this coronation a festive Mass is
celebrated on the feast of the Ascention every year.)
Though Prague suffered through wars and unrest, the church and the
Infant Jesus chapel were miraculously protected. The altar was rebuilt
in 1776 using marble and two huge sculptures of the Blessed Virgin
Mary and Saint Joseph. The Infant was kept in a glass case standing
on a pedestal engraved with crystals, and surrounding the Infant
were twenty angels in gold.
The crowned statue, clothed in a mantle of fine fabrics, represents
the royal status of the Child. It holds in the left hand a sphere
representing the world, while the right hand is raised in blessing.
During the Baroque epoche it became a habit to dress the statues.
The clothes of Prague Infant Jesus are changed several times each
year in the proper liturgical color. The most beautiful garment
in the collection is an ermine cloak placed on the statue the first
Sunday after Easter, which is the anniversary day of the coronation
of the statue by the bishop of Prague in 1655. During the Christmas
season the statue is clothed in a dark green robe made of velvet
and richly decorated with golden embroidery. This was a gift of
the Empress Maria Theresa on the occasion of her coronation as queen
of Bohemia in 1743. The infant’s wardrobe contains more than
70 dresses, given by grateful devotees, which adorn the holy statue.
(Some of the garments can be seen in the Museum of the Infant Jesus
at the church.)
The replicas of the Infant Jesus were made and distributed throughout
European churches. The Spanish colonial efforts brought the Infant
Jesus to the Philippines and to central America. And since then,
the devotion has kept spreading to all parts of the world.
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