New Stamp and Special Postmark by the Postal and Philatelic Service for the Centenary of the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology (Piac)

In 2025 the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology marks its first one hundred years of activity, and the Postal and Philatelic Service of the Governorate of Vatican City State—together with Luxembourg, with which it is issuing a joint release—celebrates this anniversary with a postage stamp dedicated to a century of scientific activity and the safeguarding of Christian-era archaeological heritage.

The Institute was founded by Pope Pius XI on March 2, 1925, through the Apostolic Constitution Ad providentiam and the motu proprio I primitivi cimiteri cristiani. A decisive contribution to the establishment of the new institution was made by the Luxembourg prelate Johann Peter Kirsch, who became its first director.

As a department of the Holy See and part of the pontifical academic network, the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology (P.I.A.C.) is devoted to the study of the material and written evidence of early Christianity and the early Middle Ages, attracting scholars and students from every continent. Over the past century, it has played a fundamental role in advancing studies of art, epigraphic documentation, and the monuments of the earliest Christian communities, fostering partnerships with universities, museums and international research institutes.

The joint-issue stamp depicts the portrait of Monsignor Kirsch and in the background the Institute’s emblem—featuring Christ as the “Good Shepherd,” in accordance with early Christian iconographic language—together with its historic headquarters on Via Napoleone III in Rome.

Through this issue, the Postal and Philatelic Service seeks to highlight the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology, emphasizing its role as a bridge between faith and scientific inquiry, between the memory of origins and the present day, and recognizing