Memorial column

The Immaculate Conception was solemnly defined as a dogma by Pope Pius IX in his constitution Ineffabilis Deus, on December 8, 1854

"The most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instant of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the saviour of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin."

In 1857, a memorial column commemorating the event was erected by Pope Pius IX in the Piazza di Spagna in Rome. On the top of the (old) cipolline column stands the bronze statue of Mary; beneath are Moses, David, Isaiah and Ezechiel.