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Scott B1-B4 (1933) The year 1933 has been on my Vatican research list for a long time. For one thing, I have never been able to learn the exact date that the Vatican Central Post Office dedication took place in 1933. A second Vatican event that fascinates me is the arrival of Nazi government officials at the Vatican in 1933 to negotiate some sort of a treaty with Pope Pius XI, negotiated by the future Pope Pius XII. In the United States, Franklin Roosevelt had just won the 1932 presidential election and was trying to get the New Deal programs started to get our country out of the depression. The VPS stamp list (available under the Reference tab) shows that in 1933 the Vatican Post office issued two sets of stamps: the Gardens & Medallions issue (5/31/1933) and the semi-postal issue for the 24th Holy Year (4/3/1933). Using 1933 as the keyword, I found a number of Vatican Notes articles about these stamps. Using the stamp number and other keywords I can also search the stamp index, the daily questions, and the daily emails for information about these stamps. Looking at the First Day Cover Cancellation Types (again under the Reference tab), it is found that the has nine different known postmark types, and the 24th Holy Year issue has four different postmark types. From the stamp list, I can see which first-day covers the VPS website has on file and compare them to the covers in my collection. Information about other non-FDC Vatican postmarks is also available on the VPS website. Back in 1961, VPS member Rev. Herbert A. Phinney proposed a standard methodology for the description of Vatican postmarks without graphically reproducing them. Phinney called on VPS members to collectively accumulate information about Vatican postmarks. calling it the "Cancellation Research Project". If you have any material that would enhance the Cancellation Research Project, please use the website contact form!! |
