Our Lady of Catalina

Our Lady of Catalina (: Notre Dame de Catherine; : Nuestra Señora de Catalina), also known as the Madonna of Grands Ballons, is a title of the  associated with a venerated image enshrined in the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Catalina in Grands Ballons, Gold Coast. The basilica is the most-visited sacred site in Sierra, and was constructed in a way which is oriented in the traditional direction the Our Lady of Catalina appeared before the skies according to accounts.

authorized devotion to the Marian title on May 9, 1871 and designated the date of celebration on the same day, commemorating the anniversary of the purported sighting of the Marian apparition. granted the image a on December 19, 1896.

The image is based off of the principal accounts of the Blessed Jacques Sagard and Ignacio Borrero, a French seaman and a Spanish soldier respectively, as well as twelve other witnesses, who reported seeing the in the waters between the Channel Islands and the Sierran mainland. The event has been cited as one of the key events responsible for the development and growth of colonial Sierra, specifically for the Channel Islands and the Southwest Corridor. The Marian title and devotional image is closely associated with Saintiana, a cultural region spanning across Southern Gold Coast and coastal Orange. It is one of the most culturally significant symbols in Sierra, and has become the de facto representation of Catholicism in Sierra vis-à-vis Saint.

Various miracles have been attributed to Our Lady of Catalina and believers have asserted that the enshrined image housed in the Minor Basilica has supernatural properties, including being able to withstand damage from falling over and other occurrences. The image is featured at many altars in Sierran Catholic homes and adorns various forms of religious objects including and.