Milagro (votive)

Milagros nailed to the church bell at San Miguel Mission of Santa Fe, New Mexico.
The text that is painted beneath this ex-voto tells of the Gonzalez family, who were on the streets one night and were attacked. But, thanks to the Virgin of San Juan de los Lagos (whose image in the painting floats between the family and their assailants) they escaped unharmed. Our Lady of San Juan de los Lagos is venerated in the region of central Mexico where the depicted incident occurred. The ex-voto is dated August 28, 1947, San Juan de los Lagos.

Milagros (also known as an ex-voto or dijes or promesas) are religious folk charms that are traditionally used for healing purposes and as votive offerings in Mexico, the southern United States, other areas of Latin America, and parts of the Iberian Peninsula. They are frequently attached to altars, shrines, and sacred objects found in places of worship, and they are often purchased in churches and cathedrals, or from street vendors.

Milagros come in a variety of shapes and dimensions and are fabricated from many different materials, depending on local customs. For example, they might be nearly flat or fully three-dimensional; and they can be constructed from gold, silver, tin, lead, wood, bone, or wax. In Spanish, the word milagro literally means miracle or surprise.