Five stamps were issued on November 7, 2013, to celebrate the sixth centenary of the Cathedral (Minor Basilica) of Santa Maria di Nardo, located in province of Lecce. The city of Lecce is located in Southern Italy on the Salento peninsula. The province of Lecce is called the “Heel of Italy”.
The cathedral has been a national monument since 1879, and in 1980 was elevated to a minor basilica. Here is a recent photo of the Nardo Cathedral:
Facade of the Santa Maria di Nardo Cathedral, Lecce, Italy
Photo by Lupiae
From Wikimedia Commons, used under terms of the Creative
Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license
The five stamps represent frescoes located on the two sides of the church aisles, dating from the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries. Of great historical and artistic value is the wooden crucifix of the twelfth century, known as the “Black Christ”. Here is a brief review of the stamps and their subjects:
Saint Augustine
Date Issued: November 7, 2013
Perforations: 13 x 13 1/4
Value: 5c
Scott #1544
Quotes of St. Augustine:
“You have made us for yourself, O’Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.
“Patience is the companion of wisdom.”
“God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.”
“The spiritual virtue of a sacrament is like light; although is passes among the impure, it is not polluted.”
Our Lady of Health
Date Issued: November 7, 2013
Perforations: 13 x 13 1/4
Value: 10c
Scott #1545
The Blessed Mother in imitation of Jesus is a divine physician. She is the model of a merciful Mother of God, the Health of the Sick – body and spirit. Devotion to "Mary - Health of the Sick" spread, especially in Italy, during the 17th Century. The Italian plague (1629-1631) is referred to as the "Great Plague of Milan". Estimates of deaths range from 250,000 to 1 million over all of Italy. Historians have noted that significant economic and political decline occurred as a result of the plague, especially in Milan. At the time Milan was the commercial center of Italy. The feast day of Our Lady, Health of the Sick is August 23th. During the recent COVID crises on March, 2020 Pope Francis recited a prayer to "Our Lady, Health of the Sick".
Madonna del Giglio
Date Issued: November 7, 2013
Perforations: 13 x 13 1/4
Value: 15c
Scott #1546
Fresco of the Virgin Mary nursing the baby Jesus and holding a lily in her hand.
St. Nicholas of Myra
Date Issued: November 7, 2013
Perforations: 13 x 13 1/4
Value: 25c
Scott #1547
St. Nicholas was born in Turkey to wealthy Christian parents. He lost his parents prematurely and became a wealthy adolescent. He became a priest and devoted his inheritance to works of charity.
Bishop of Myra of Lycia (Asia Minor); died sometime around 350 CE.
One legend is that St. Nicholas helped a father and his three daughters. The daughters' father did not have any money. The father's thinking was that the only way the family could survive was to have his daughters become prostitutes. St. Nicholas got word of the father's dilemma and then secretly went to the family's house on a number of occasions and dropped off bags of money at night.
He became known as the protector of children and sailors, and to this day has been associated with gift giving.
How the life of St. Nicholas gave rise to the myth of Santa Claus is another story. It began with the Dutch tradition of Pakjesavand, a night of gift-giving and hospitality held on the eve of the feast day of St. Nicholas. Younger children were told that "Sinterklass (St. Nicholas) would place nuts and fruits in their shoes as they slept. The myth comes together with the holiday of Christmas eve by the poem "A visit from St. Nicholas - 'Twas the night before Christmas....' by Clement Moore. Moore was an American writer, scholar and real estate developer.
Christ Pantocrator
Date Issued: November 7, 2013
Perforations: 13 x 13 1/4
Value: 45c
Scott #1548
7th Century fresco of Christ Pantocrator (Christ – Almighty, Christ All-Powerful)
The term "Pantocrator" is a title of Christ where he is represented as the ruler of the universe (especially in Byzantine church decoration).
References:
Cathedral Of Lecce
Guido Alfani, Plague in seventeenth-century Europe and the decline of Italy: an epidemiological hypothesis
European Review of Economic History, Volume 17, Issue 4, November 2013, Pages 408–430
Pope Francis’ prayer to Our Lady, Health of the Sick Aleteia
Monday 13 May, Saint of the Day: Our Lady of Fatima
Clement Clarke Moore - Wikipedia
|
