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Popes on the Stamps of Vatican City:
Saint Peter and the
Sede Vacante Stamps

Lou Giorgetti


Today we wrap up our series of articles on the "Popes on the Stamps of Vatican City".

This last installment is a bit unusual, both due to its content and the circumstances surrounding today's presentation.

We are presenting the article on Saint Peter since that excerpt was not transmitted to the membership in the Daily Email on July 21, 2024, due to the hacking incident that occurred with the VPS website. Rather than not showing it at all, this seemed like a good time to resend it.

The last installment goes against the title of our series--Popes on Stamps. The excerpt on the Sede Vacante stamps presents stamps that DO NOT picture any of the popes, as they are stamps issued following the death or retirement of a pope. These stamps picture the "umbraculum", the symbol where the papal tiara in the coat of arms of the Holy See is replaced with an umbrella, symbolizing the absence of a pope. Thus, no papal portraits or other depictions of the late or retired pope appear on these stamps.

We hope this two-week series has been educational and enjoyable! Please let us know what you thought about it, and if you have any suggestions for other topics found on Vatican City stamps that we could look into presenting.