The Santo Cristo Milagroso

The Chapel of the Santo Cristo Milagroso in Dadalaquiten Norte (the white building), taken from
the Chapel of the La Virgen Milagrosa in nearby Paguetpet, Badoc. The body of water in the
picture is part of the seashore where the two images were allegedly found floating in a box.

Sinait houses the Sanctuary of the Miraculous Statue of the Black Nazarene (El Santo Cristo
Milagroso), fondly called by its residents as "Apo Lakay," and a treasure of Ilocandia. History
traces the life-sized statue to Nagasaki, Japan. It was probably sent floating in the sea by
missionaries operating in secret in Japan (for fear of persecution during the Tokugawa Regime).
The box was found by local fishermen in the shores of Barangay Dadalaquiten Norte, on the
boundary between Sinait and nearby Paguetpet (La Virgen Milagrosa), Badoc, in the year 1620,
and fishermen from both towns carried it ashore. They found two statues inside the box—a
statue of the Black Nazarene, and a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary. According to legend, The
fishermen from Sinait mysteriously were unable to move the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
but had no problems moving the Statue of the Black Nazarene. The fishermen from Badoc,
however, were able to move the Statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary (later called the La Virgen
Milagrosa) with ease, as they were unable to carry the image of the Black Nazarene. They took
the statues to their respective towns, hence becoming their patron saints. In 1656, with a
spreading devotion to the Santo Cristo Milagroso due to its miraculous powers, the Black
Crucifix was taken to the capital town of Vigan, since an epidemic was raging there and through
the devotion of the faithful, many got cured. Because of this, it is considered as an intercessor
of all kinds of affliction and sickness. In 1660, because of the growing veneration to the image,
the faithful begun the construction of a permanent edifice to house it. It took the people of
Sinait eight years to construct the church with funds provides by the Spanish Audiencia. Today
the landing site of Apo Lakay still exists in Barangay Dadalaquiten Norte, and is a place of
pilgrimage for devotees.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinait