These putti were originally placed next to the large Crucifix, still housed on the altar, to which a miraculous event in the history of Lipari is linked. According to the “Historical News of the Province of the Capuchins of Messina” by Fr. Andrea da Paternò, in 1722 the island of Vulcano began to erupt fire and lapilli, causing numerous telluric tremors. The frightened Liparesi, fearing imminent destruction of the island, gathered supplicatingly in the Convent of the Capuchin Fathers. After Friar Vincenzo da Petralia, in concept of sanctity, invited the people to prayer, the right hand of the great Crucifix was seen to detach itself from the cross and draw a blessing sign over the people gathered in prayer. The friar interpreted the prodigy as a sign of God’s mercy, inviting the people to penance and conversion. Thus the frightful eruptions of Vulcan ceased and serenity returned among the people.
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