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

Christmas

On sale Yes
Face value € 1,25 (stamp) and € 6,95 (sheet).
Stamp description

The sheet reproduces, on its full surface, Giorgione’s painting Madonna and Child Enthroned and Saints Nicasio and Francesco, also known as the Castelfranco Altarpiece, commissioned by the Knight of Rhodes and commander of the Venetian Republic Tuzio Costanzo for the family chapel in the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta and San Liberale in Castelfranco Veneto, and still kept there. The upper central part, corresponding to the depiction of the Madonna and Child, is enclosed by perforations on three sides, forming the stamp. Similarly, in the central band, to the left and right respectively, two stamps frame the figures of Saint Nicasio, a Hierosolymitan knight, and Saint Francis of Assisi. Inside the three stamps are the inscriptions “SOVRANO MILITARE ORDINE DI MALTA” and “POSTE MAGISTRALI”, the coat of arms of the Order’s activities and the face values “€ 3.20”, “€ 2.45” and “€ 1.30”. In the bottom centre of the sheet is the inscription “SOVRANO MILITARE ORDINE DI MALTA – POSTE MAGISTRALI” and, immediately below it, on two lines, the legend “GIORGIONE, MADONNA CON IL BAMBINO IN TRONO E I SANTI NICASIO E FRANCESCO, CASTELFRANCO VENETO, DUOMO DI SANTA MARIA ASSUNTA E SAN LIBERALE”. Flanking the inscriptions, on the left and right, respectively, are the Order’s coat of arms and the coat of arms of the activities. In the upper right corner of the sheet is the inscription ‘NATALE 2023’.

The single stamp shows the detail of the Madonna and Child. It features the inscriptions “SOVRANO MILITARE ORDINE DI MALTA”, “POSTE MAGISTRALI”, “NATALE 2023”, the Order’s coat of arms and the face value “€ 1.25”.

Date of issue 24 november 2023
Face values € 1,25 (stamp) and € 1,30, € 2,45, € 3,20 (sheet).
Size 30 x 40 mm.
Perforation 13 ¼ X 13.
Souvenir sheet size 102 x 145 mm.
Print run five thousand five hundred stamps and three thousand numbered sheets.
Stamp sheet 20 stamps.
Printed by Cartor Security printers, La Loupe, France, in offset.