If the Order had maintained its system of keeping the octaves of its major feasts, the Octave of the B.V.M. of the Rosary would be celebrated from October 8 till October 14. This is one of the many octaves that the Dominicans included in their calendar, as a means of prolonging the celebration of saints (or in this case, their Patroness), that were casualties of the revisions of Dominican calendar that took place in the middle of the 20th Century. Not all of the Dominican saints had "solemn" octaves after their feast day, but the major ones like St. Dominic, St. Catherine of Sienna, St. Thomas Aquinas, and St. Peter Martyr did.
Actually, this feast was originally celebrated on the 1st Sunday of October. That is where it appears in the 1909 calendar. This means that the octave was celebrated on the 2nd Sunday of October. You can see the problem that was caused, by assigning feasts of the sanctorale to the Sundays of the year. This, along with the numerous totum duplex feasts of the saints of th eOrder and others led to the situation where the Sundays were hardly ever celebrated as such. Moving the date of the feast to October 7 (the actual day of the Battle of Lepanto) was a nice solution that preserved the solemn celebration of the feast, and avoided the interruption of the temporale.
Every day during the octave, a commemoration was made at Lauds and Vespers using the proper versicle/responsory, Benedictus/Magnificat antiphons provided in the sanctorale. The versicles and responses come from the feast, as does the antiphon at Lauds (which comes from 1st Vespers of the feast), but I have not been able to tell where the antiphon for Vespers comes from. In fact, I could not find a translation of the antiphon for Vespers. So if anyone out there can either translate it, or can point me toward a good English translation of it, i would be immensely appreciative.
Ad Bened. ant. Speciosa facta es et suavis in deliciis virginitatis sancta Dei genitrix: quam videntes filiae Syon vernantem in floribus rosarum et liliis convalium. Beatissimam praedicaverunt,et regine laudaverunt eam. | Ad Bened. ant. The holy Mother of God is beautiful and comely in the delights of virginity. When they saw her flourishing among the roses and lilies of the valleys, the maidens of Sion called her happy and queens praised her |
V. Elegit eam Deus, et praeelegit eam. R. Et habitare eam facit in tabernaculo suo. | V. God has chosen her, and has given her preference. R. He gives her his home to dwell in. |
Oratio. Deus, cuius Unigenitus per vitam, mortem et resurrectionem suam nobis salutis aeternae praemia comparavit: concede, quaesumus; ut haec mysteria sacratissimo beatae Mariae Virginis Rosario recolentes, et imitemur quod continent, et quod promittunt, assequamur. Per Dominum nostrum… | Prayer O God, whose only begotten Son, by His life, death, and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal life, grant, we beseech thee, that by meditating on these mysteries of the most holy Rosary, of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise. Through the same… |
Ad Magnif. ant. Sancta Maria virginum piissima suscipe vota servulorum assidua lapsos erige errantes corrige trementes corrobora pusillanimes conforta ut tibi semper referamus laudes quam Dei summi colimus Genetricem. | Ad Magnif. ant. Holy Mary, most tender of virgins, receive the constant prayers of your little servants: raise up the fallen, correct the wayward, strengthen the trembling, comfort the faint-hearted: so that we may ever offer praises to you whom we honor as the Mother of the Most High God. |
V. Regina sacratissimi Rosarii ora pro nobis. R. Ut digni efficiámur promissiónibus Christi. | V. Queen of the most holy Rosary pray for us. R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. |