The “Scala Santa” is the staircase that Jesus ascended to Pilate’s praetorium. It is therefore a precious reminder of the Passion.

This staircase, sanctified by the footsteps of the Saviour, still exists. It is venerated in Rome, facing the Basilica of Saint John of Lateran.

In the last century it became more customary, in several places of the Catholic world, to build staircases that exactly replicate the Scala Santa of Rome.

This example is followed at Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré, where in 1891 the first monument of this type in America was erected. In each of the staircase’s risers a souvenir from different shrines from the Holy Land was inserted. The Holy Stairs themselves are located inside the building, on the second floor.