Pope Crowns Statue of Mary

"Queen of Cuba" in Santiago Cuba.

http://www.aloha.net/~mikesch/crown.htm

On Saturday, the 24th of January, 1998, Pope John Paul II crowned this doll-sized statue of Mary
as the patroness and "Queen of Cuba" during a papal Mass.
The statue, the most venerated and idolized in all of Cuba, is known as La Virgen de la Caridad
(The Virgin of Charity at Cobre), and was brought in procession from Cobre to Santiago for the
papal Mass.

Three fishermen are said to have found the icon floating on a board at sea in the year 1606. The
Virgin of Cobre was declared Cuba's national patron saint by Pope Benedict XV in 1916.
The crowns ready for placement by Pope John Paul II. The larger crown was put on the head of
the statue of Mary, and the smaller was placed on the head of the smaller doll of the infant Jesus.

Pope John Paul II places the crown on the head of the statue of Mary, proclaiming her the
patroness and "Queen of Cuba." An announcer led the large assembled crowd in shouting "Viva!
Queen of Cuba", "Viva! Blessed Mother of Charity", and "We all belong to you Mary."
The Apocryphal book of Baruch, considered to be part of Holy Scripture by Catholics, clearly
describes the dressing, crowning, and procession of statues as a pagan Babylonian practice, and
idolatry.

This medal commemorates the papal visit to crown the statue.

Here is a web page with details on Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre and other Marian
Statues, Images, and Titles in Latin America.