Sovereign Military Hospitaller
Order of St John of Jerusalem of
Rhodes and of Malta

7th centenary of the death of Dante Alighieri

On sale Yes
Face value Souvenir sheet 7,80 €
Stamp description

Poste Magistrali commemorates the 7th centenary of the death of Dante Alighieri with the issue of triptych postal stamps in a souvenir sheet.

The central stamp depicts the great poet, detail of the painting by Raphael, The Parnassus (Stanza della Segnatura, Vatican City). The two side stamps reproduce illuminated images taken from manuscripts of the Divine Comedy which, due to its extraordinary success, was already being extensively reproduced in the 14th century after the death of the poet. On the left, a miniature of the Florentine School illustrates some phases of the Comedy (Florence, Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale); on the right, a 15th century version of the work depicts the vision of Paradise according to Dante: a flower surmounted by flying angels (Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Vatican City).

On the souvenir sheet, the triptych stamps represent:

Scuola Fiorentina: Ms. BR 215 c.78 v. Divina Commedia Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale, Florence.
© 2021. Photo Scala, Florence – courtesy of Ministero Beni e Attività Culturali e del Turismo.

Raffaello Sanzio: The Parnassus (det.) Dante. Stanza della Segnatura. Vatican City
©2021. Photo Scala, Florence.

Vision of Paradise according to Dante from 15th-century version of the Divine Comedy.
Vatican Library. Vatican City.
©2021. Photo Art Media/Heritage Images/Scala, Florence.

Centre of lower margin of souvenir sheet: Dante Alighieri 1321 -2021.

Date of issue 31 May 2021.
Face values three € 2.60 stamps in a souvenir sheet for a total of € 7.80.
Size 40 x 52 mm.
Perforation 13 x 13.
Souvenir sheet size 140 x 90 mm.
Print run three thousand numbered souvenir sheets.
Stamp sheet
Printed by offset. Cartor Security Printing, La Loupe, Francia.