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 Brussels World's Fair Scott 239-242 (1958) The Brussels International Exhibition was held in Brussels, Belgium from April 17,1958 to October 19,1958. Forty-seven national pavilions were built. More than 41 million visitors attended the exhibition which was opened with a call for world peace and social and economic progress. One of the landmark exhibits at the Exposition was the Atomium, a 335-foot tall structure designed to resemble an iron crystal. The Atomium is one of the few remaining structures from the Expo, and was repurposed as a museum. It is one of the city's most-visited landmarks.  The Atomium, Brussels World Exposition Photo from 2017 by Theedi From Wikimedia Commons Used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license Vatican City also had a prominent presence at the Exposition. For its pavilion, the Vatican received a 14,220 square meter space, a triangular-shaped plot which influenced the architectural plan. The name to the pavilion, Civitas Dei (City of God) inspired the design of the building layout as an impressive city surrounded by massive walls without gates, readily accessible to all people. A church was necessary to provide for attendance at Mass for the multitudes and for exhibiting liturgical objects. A chapel of the Blessed Sacrament was added to give the opportunity at all times for visits to the Blessed Sacrament and for confessions. At the narrow end of the plot, a restaurant was built to accommodate 2,000 people where they could eat at modest prices. A conservative estimate indicates a minimum 15 million people visited the Vatican Pavilion. Guided tours were conducted each half hour, each time in a different language. Priests and hostesses were available at all hours to answer questions on the exhibit. Pope Pius XII was unable to attend the exhibition for heath reasons. But, on the Feast of the Assumption, August 15, a Pontifical High Mass was celebrated in the Brussels Heysel Stadium by the Pontifical Legate, Cardinal Siri. A sermon by Pope Pius XII was televised directly to the stadium after the gospel of the Mass. The Pope died less than two months later on October 9, 1958. To commemorate the Brussels International Exhibition, on June 19, 1958, Vatican City issued a set of four stamps (Scot 239-242), plus its second souvenir sheet (Scott 242a). This was the first time in its 29-year philatelic history that the Vatican issued commemorative stamps to record a non-religious event. The issue consists of two designs by Casimira Dabrowska. The 35L and the 300L depict Pope Pius XII and were engraved by Alceo Quieti. Francesco Tulli engraved the 60L and the 100L stamps, which depicted the Vatican Pavilion. A total of 300,000 sets of the 35L and 60L stamps, and 250,000 sets of the 100L and 300L were printed in sheets of 30 (6x5). The single stamps perforations measure 13.25x14. The four stamps were also issued in a souvenir sheet as a block of the four values. At the top of the sheet is the Papal tiara and crossed keys. At the bottom of the souvenir sheet is a translated inscription ‘Participation of the Apostolic See in the Brussels International Exhibition 1958’. 200,000 souvenir sheets were printed with the stamp perforations measuring 12.75x13. Prior to being issued, the Vatican said the printing and sale of the souvenir sheet would be restricted and rationed on a basis of one sheet for each ten sets of stamps. After much protest, the requirement was reduced to two sets of singles having to be purchased for each souvenir sheet. Dealers were selling the singles for $3.25 while the souvenir sheet was going for $4.25.  Brussels World's Fair Souvenir Sheet Scott 242a (1958) The exhibition closed on Sunday, October 19, 1958. A solemn Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated in the Church of the Risen Christ, the name of the pavilion Church. At 8PM the doors closed to the exhibit. Between then and December 16, the pavilions were dismantled and removed. The Brussels International Exhibition, 1958, was indeed over. REFERENCES: |
