Postage stamps and postal history of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
Encyclopedia
This is a survey of the postage stamps and postal history
of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta, otherwise known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta or SMOM is a Roman Catholic
order based in Rome
, Italy
. The order takes its origins from the Knights Hospitaller
, an organization founded in Jerusalem in 1050. Following the loss of Christian held territories of the Holy Land
to Muslims, the Order operated from Rhodes
(1310–1523), and later from Malta
(1530–1798), over which it was sovereign
.
; 1 Scudo = 12 Tari = 240 Grani = 12 Malta cents. Since 1 January 2005 the stamps have been denominated in Euros.
The stamps are inscribed Poste Magistrali and bear one or more small Maltese Cross
es. Early issues were printed by De La Rue
, but today a variety of Maltese and Italian printers are used. As well as postage stamps, the Order has produced aerogrammes, maximum card
s, first day covers, miniature sheet
s, postage due
stamps and postcards with imprinted stamp
s.
Each year, one stamp issue is devoted to St. John the Baptist, who is the Order's Patron Saint
, and one to the celebration of Christmas.
s as they do not have postal validity throughout the world. Most postal agreements are with countries in which the order does charitable work.
The SMOM is not a member of the Universal Postal Union
.
Postal history
Postal history is the study of postal systems and how they operate and, or, the study of postage stamps and covers and associated material illustrating historical episodes of postal systems...
of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta, otherwise known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta or SMOM is a Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
order based in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. The order takes its origins from the Knights Hospitaller
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
, an organization founded in Jerusalem in 1050. Following the loss of Christian held territories of the Holy Land
Holy Land
The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...
to Muslims, the Order operated from Rhodes
Rhodes
Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
(1310–1523), and later from Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
(1530–1798), over which it was sovereign
Sovereignty
Sovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a geographic area, such as a territory. It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no purely legal explanation can be provided...
.
Stamps
The postal administration of the order, known as the Poste Magistrali, was instituted on 20 May 1966 under a Decree of the Grand Master of the order and the first stamps were issued on 15 November 1966. Until recently the stamps were denominated in the currency of the order which was Scudi, Grani and Tari, which roughly equated to the currency of Malta before it joined the EurozoneEurozone
The eurozone , officially called the euro area, is an economic and monetary union of seventeen European Union member states that have adopted the euro as their common currency and sole legal tender...
; 1 Scudo = 12 Tari = 240 Grani = 12 Malta cents. Since 1 January 2005 the stamps have been denominated in Euros.
The stamps are inscribed Poste Magistrali and bear one or more small Maltese Cross
Maltese cross
The Maltese cross, also known as the Amalfi cross, is identified as the symbol of an order of Christian warriors known as the Knights Hospitaller or Knights of Malta and through them came to be identified with the Mediterranean island of Malta and is one of the National symbols of Malta...
es. Early issues were printed by De La Rue
De La Rue
De La Rue plc is a British security printing, papermaking and cash handling systems company headquartered in Basingstoke, Hampshire. It also has a factory on the Team Valley Trading Estate, Gateshead, and other facilities at Loughton, Essex and Bathford, Somerset...
, but today a variety of Maltese and Italian printers are used. As well as postage stamps, the Order has produced aerogrammes, maximum card
Maximum card
In philately a maximum card is a postcard with a postage stamp placed on the picture side of the card where the stamp and card match or are in concordance. In most cases, the cancel is also related to the image on the front of the card and the stamp.The collecting of maximum cards is known as...
s, first day covers, miniature sheet
Miniature sheet
A souvenir sheet or miniature sheet is a small group of postage stamps still attached to the sheet on which they were printed. They may be either regular issues that just happen to be printed in small groups , or special issues often commemorating some event, such as a national anniversary,...
s, postage due
Postage due
Postage due is the term used for mail sent with insufficient postage. A postage due stamp is a stamp added to an underpaid piece of mail to indicate the extra postage due.- Background :...
stamps and postcards with imprinted stamp
Imprinted stamp
In philately an imprinted stamp is a stamp printed on to a piece of postal stationery such as a stamped envelope, postal card, letter sheet, letter card, aerogram or wrapper. The printing is flat upon the surface of the paper, as opposed to an embossed stamp which has a raised relief...
s.
Each year, one stamp issue is devoted to St. John the Baptist, who is the Order's Patron Saint
Patron saint
A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
, and one to the celebration of Christmas.
Status
The stamps are issued for both postal and charitable reasons. Despite over 50 bi-lateral postal agreements the stamps are usually classed as cinderella stampCinderella stamp
In philately, a cinderella stamp has been defined as "Virtually anything resembling a postage stamp, but not issued for postal purposes by a government postal administration..." The term also excludes imprinted stamps on postal stationery.- Types :...
s as they do not have postal validity throughout the world. Most postal agreements are with countries in which the order does charitable work.
The SMOM is not a member of the Universal Postal Union
Universal Postal Union
The Universal Postal Union is an international organization that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to the worldwide postal system. The UPU contains four bodies consisting of the Congress, the Council of Administration , the Postal Operations Council and the...
.