According to Mary Gardener John S. Stokes, in medieval times the wild rose was called Mary's Rose and it was the wild rose that was the model for the central rose windows of the medieval cathedrals. Mary herself was compared to a rose, and:
“[A]n entire garden of roses was used to symbolize the fullness of Our Lady's virtues and glories, and as Pope Pius XII has said . . . ‘The rosary represents primarily a garden of roses offered to Mary, an adornment of her image, a symbol of her graces’.Mary's titles include Mystical Rose and Queen of the Most Holy Rosary.
“For prayer everywhere, as well as in the garden, the symbolism of the rose and the garden of roses has been embodied in the string of rosary beads, which serves as an aid for meditating on fifteen of Our Lady's mysteries."
Source of quoted material:
John S. Stokes. Mary Gardens at University of Dayton website.
Image:
Rosa Acicularis (wild rose) from Wikimedia Commons.
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