The Magistral Archives and Library, as we know them today, were established at the end of the 19th century, when the Magistral Palace became the actual residence of the Grand Master.

The Magistral Archives originated from the fusion of six different historical archives, initially autonomous, which were joined in the 20th century by the papers produced by the Grand Magistry’s nascent administrative offices.

The Magistral Library was established thanks to the numerous donations of books from the spolia of the Order’s Knights, and has always collected, protected and disseminated the Order’s bibliographic heritage throughout the world, fulfilling the role of the Order of Malta’s central library and preserving one of the world’s most complete collections of books and articles on the Order.

Still today, the Magistral Archives and Library, through continuous updating, provide historical and bibliographical information to scholars, researchers and any kind of user who wants to learn more about the history, traditions and activities of the Order of Malta.

The series consists of four stamps, the first of which depicts the Reading Room of the Grand Magistry Library, named after H.M.E.H. Fra’ Andrew Bertie (1929-2008), 78th Prince and Grand Master. The room was completely renovated between 2007 and 2009, and houses the collection dedicated to the Order of Malta, composed of almost 6,000 items which, added to the other books and articles in the general collection, offer researchers a total of over 10,000 items.

The second stamp depicts the family tree of the fourth of his paternal ancestor (Albani) presented by Carlo Albani in 1729, when he applied for admission to the Order. It shows the candidate’s illustrious relatives: his great-uncle, Pope Clement XI, and his paternal uncles, Cardinals Alexander and Hannibal.

The third stamp reproduces the coat of arms of Carlo Emanuele di Savoia-Carignano (1770-1800), sixth prince of Carignano and member of the then cadet branch of the ruling house of Sardinia and Piedmont. The noble coat of arms, painted in 1788, is supported by two lions and is accolled by the crimson mantle lined with ermine motifs moving from the princely crown.

The fourth stamp shows some eighteenth-century volumes of ‘Giustificazioni dei bilanci della Ricetta di Roma’, the office in charge of the Order’s fiscal administration in central Italy. The pieces, kept in the Magistral Archives, are part of a vast and precious heritage that includes documentation of the Priory of Rome, of the Lingua d’Italia and of the Grand Magistry, produced and collected during the Modern and Contemporary Ages.

Each stamp is completed by the legend ‘Archivi e Biblioteca Magistrali’, the inscriptions ‘SOVRANO MILITARE ORDINE DI MALTA’ and ‘POSTE MAGISTRALI’, the coat-of-arms of the Order’s activities and the face value ‘€ 1.30’.

Credits: Grand Magistry of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.