The statue was made in 1889 and kept in a special chapel in St. Joachim's Church on Roosevelt Street where it was venerated by many of the Italian immigrant faithful. When St. Joachim's was demolished in 1958, the statue was taken to St. Joseph's Church, 5 Monroe Street. In 2015 when St. Joseph's was closed the statue was moved to Most Precious Blood Church at 113 Baxter Street, NY, NY, where it can be seen today.
The original statue is of magnificent artistic quality, made of Italian paper mache'. It weighs with its base over 100 lbs. It is the oldest Italian American religious society statue in New York.
As the statue aged, Angela Carnevale the Treasurer of the St. Rocco Society and then it's acting President and sole organizer decided to purchase a new processional statue, fearing the original priceless statue might be damaged while carrying it in the procession. For many years this processional statue had been used for the Feast and Procession. In 2014, for the 125th anniversary of the feast, the original statue was carried in the procession and used in the last feast at St. Joseph's and was also used in the first Feast at Most Precious Blood, where it is planned to be used in future celebrations.
