Vatican Postal History

The Vatican City is the smallest sovereign state (108.7 acres) to issue its own stamps. The Vatican is conservative in the issuing of collectible stamps, only doing about 12 commemorative series per year. These series may feature religious and historical subjects and many collectors are interested in these. Vatican City gained its political independence from Italy on February 11, 1929. Two days later, the Vatican Post Office began its operation with supplies and equipment donated by others. The first stamps issued by the Vatican on August 1, 1929, were called the Conciliation series. This series consisted of 15 stamps - 13 were regular issue which depicted the papal tiara and crossed keys and two were special delivery stamps which featured Pope Pius XI, the current Pope. This is a good article that everyone would enjoy.
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