Pilgrims present at the joint canonizations on September 7 of Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis will have the opportunity to take home a special souvenir – commemorative Vatican stamps of the two saints, to be released immediately after their canonization.
The Vatican postal service is known for printing stamps at milestone moments in the Church. A Pope Leo XIV stamp is now available and, earlier this year, there was even a Sede Vacante stamp after Pope Francis’ death.
The postal service has also been known to get creative symbolically. In 1938, they released their first set of airmail stamps. Each showed some renowned Church imagery, such as the dove with an olive branch who once showed Noah signs of life after the flood; the prophet Elijah going to heaven in a chariot of fire; and even the airborne House of Loreto, which was reportedly carried by angels from Nazareth.
The Vatican is the smallest country in the world, but its post office stays extremely active, both through the issuing of stamps and serving pilgrims who visit the Holy See from around the world.
Familiar friends
The stamps to be released Sunday will feature two very recognizable images of these two Italian saints. The Frassati stamp consists of a portrait of Pier Giorgio painted by Alberto Falchetti. The other stamp is an iconic photograph of Carlo Acutis, wearing a red shirt and a back pack. The photo was taken during a school trip on Mount Subiaso, near Assisi, shortly before Carlo died.
While the image of many saints have been pictured on postal stamps, it is particularly fitting for Pier Giorgio Frassati, who was a prolific letter writer. He wrote so many letters that many are featured in a book titled Letters to His Friends and Family.
Acutis, on the other hand, was a teenager of the early 2000s, known more for his internet evangelization than putting pen to paper.
Nevertheless, collectors may be especially interested that the Vatican will offer a special commemorative folder for Carlo Acutis that also includes a “day of issue” postmark.
Vatican stamps can be prized collectors items – the Smithsonian Museum, for example, has almost 1,500 different Vatican stamps.
These stamps and others can be found at the Vatican post office on the left side of the plaza within the colonnade on St. Peter’s Square on the day of the canonization. Afterwards, they can be purchased at other Vatican post offices, such as at the “Porta Anna” and the Vatican Museums.
For those following the canonizations from afar, the stamps will also be available online.
Of course, these stamps (with a face value of 1.35 Euro) may well serve a different purpose: to actually affix to a postcard to drop in the vibrant yellow Vatican mailboxes to send to friends or family, sharing with them the experience of two witnesses to Christ being recognized as saints in heaven.
