Good timing–I just finished reading The Wonder of Guadalupe by Francis Johnston. It was published in 1981 Tan Books & Publishers, so it doesn’t acknowlege Saint Juan Diego’s canonization. I’d recommend it to those who are interested in learning more about the image, since it goes into the historical settings around the apparition, as well as a chapter called “The Verdict of Science” which describes all of the anaysis the image has undergone…with no scientific explanation offered other than it has to be a Divine image of Our Lady!
Anyway, here’s a quote from that book: “The tilma of Juan Diego comprises two straight lengths of ayate fibre sewn together in the center and woven so coarsely that when viewed close-up it appears to be almost transparent. During the sixteenth century the garment was gut down to the size of the image, which measures 66"x41”. The Figure of Our Lady is 56" tall…" (p. 116)
Also of note: “*1791: The sacred image is miraculously preserved from destruction when nitric acid, used to clean the gold and silver fram, is accidentally spilled across the delicate fabric of the picture, leaving nothing more than a watermark.” *
And:
"November 14th, 1921: Further miraculous preservation of the sacred image when a bomb, exploded beneath it by anti-religious Government agents, did not even crack its glass cover.
Cool, huh?
