Vatican · 50th anniversary of the death of Pater Pio

Issue date4 Oct 2018

Total mintage94,000

EU maximum101,000

Editions3

Edge lettering2 ★ × 6, alternately upright/inverted

InscriptionCITTÀ DEL VATICANO / Padre Pio / R / 1968 / 2018 / P. DANIELE

DesignerPatrizio Daniele (Valerio De Seta)

mintInstituto Poligrafico e Zecca Dello Stato, Roma

Issue occasion

The commemorative coin commemorates the 50th anniversary of the death of Padre Pio. The design shows him in right profile, accompanied by the inscriptions “CITTÀ DEL VATICANO” and “Padre Pio”, as well as the years “1968” and “2018”.

The design

The coin features a profile portrait of Padre Pio facing right. Above the portrait, the issuing country “CITTÀ DEL VATICANO” is inscribed in a semicircle from left to right. Below the portrait is the inscription “Padre Pio”, followed further to the right by the mint mark “R”. The year “1968” is engraved to the left of the portrait and the year of issue “2018” to the right. The artist’s name “P. DANIELE” appears below the year on the left.

The outer ring of the coin depicts the twelve stars of the European flag.

Background on the topic

Pater Pio’s civil name was Francesco Forgione. He was born in 1887 in Pietrelcina near Benevent and joined the Capuchin Order as a young man. There he adopted the religious name Pio. After his ordination as a priest, he worked mainly at the Capuchin monastery in San Giovanni Rotondo in Apulien from 1916 onward.

He became known above all for the wounds visible on his body, which were interpreted as stigmata. In the Catholic tradition, this term refers to injuries corresponding to the wounds of the crucified Jesus. These phenomena made Pater Pio known far beyond Italy, but were also the subject of medical examinations and ecclesiastical investigations. At times, Church authorities restricted his public priestly activities. Later, he was once again permitted to celebrate Mass publicly and hear confessions.

Many faithful sought him out as a confessor and spiritual adviser. Prayer groups formed around him, combining communal prayer with charitable activities. On his initiative, the hospital “Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza” in San Giovanni Rotondo was also established and opened in 1956. The institution was intended to combine modern medical care with religious and pastoral support.

Pope Johannes Paul II beatified Pater Pio in 1999 and canonized him in 2002. His Catholic feast day is observed on 23 September. His tomb is located in San Giovanni Rotondo, which developed into a heavily visited Catholic pilgrimage site.

The Vatican coin issue is thus connected with the veneration of a saint whose work brought together the priesthood, the ministry of confession, prayer communities and care for the sick. For the Vatican City State (Vatikanstadt), the anniversary provided an occasion to depict on a circulating commemorative coin a member of a religious order widely known in Italian and international Catholicism.