Our Lady of Guadalupe (Spanish: Nuestra Seora de Guadalupe), also called the Virgin of Guadalupe (Spanish: Virgen de Guadalupe) and a 16th century Roman Catholic icon depicting an apparition of the Virgin Mary. It is Mexico's most beloved religious and cultural image. Our Lady of Guadalupe is known in Mexico as "La Virgen Morena", which means "The brown-skinned Virgin". Our Lady of Guadalupe's feast day is celebrated on December 12, commemorating the account of her appearances to Saint Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac near Mexico City from December 9 through December 12, 1531. The Virgin of Guadalupe is a cultural symbol of significant importance to the Mexican identity. The Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City is the second most visited Roman catholic shrine in the world after the Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican. According to traditional Catholic accounts of the Guadalupan apparitions, during a walk from his village to the city on the early morning of December 9, 1531, Juan Diego saw a vision of the Virgin - a young girl of fourteen to sixteen, surrounded by light- at the Hill of Tepeyac. Speaking in Nahuatl, the Lady asked for a church to be built at that site in her honor. When Juan Diego spoke to the Spanish bishop, Fray Juan de Zumrraga, the bishop asked him for a miraculous sign to prove his claim. The Virgin asked Juan Diego to gather some flowers at the top of the hill, even though it was winter when no flowers bloomed. He found there Castillian roses, gathered them, and the Virgin herself re-arranged them in his tilma. Diego presented these to bishop Zumrraga. When he presented the roses to Zumrraga, the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe miraculously appeared imprinted on the cloth of Diego's tilma. Scientists are unable to explain the image.n of Holy Cross, and Mola di Bari, Italy.