In art historical terms, a black Madonna is a painting or sculpture depicting the Virgin Mary with dark or black skin, created in Europe in the late medieval period, or sometimes an older image whose documented popular cult dates from that time. Some are made of dark or black materials such as ebony, others are said to have become blackened from the soot of candles, although this explanation and the significance of the Madonna’s skin colour is contested. There are several hundred black Madonnas in Europe. The topic of black Madonnas has attracted a considerable literature in recent decades approaching the subject from the perspective of various academic disciplines including anthropology, psychology, art history, feminism, and Black history.

According to legend, a black wooden statue of the Virgin Mary carved by Saint Luke was found in Jerusalem by Saint Eusebius of Vercelli and carried to Oropa, Northern Italy, in the 4th century and placed in a small niche in a rock. Around this a church was built in the Middle Ages, which during the early 17th century was replaced with what is known today as the Ancient Basilica. In the following two centuries several other buildings were added to the complex, including the royal apartments of the House of Savoy, a library and the Royal Gate designed by the architect Filippo Juvarra in the 18th century. The last building added to the sanctuary was the Upper Basilica, a monumental church built between 1885 and 1960 to accomodate the large number of pilgrims visiting Oropa. Its dome is 80 metres high and the church can hold 3,000 people. Along with the usual amenities of pilgrim hostels and souvenir shops, Oropa is one of the few Marian sanctuaries to have its own cinema.