Sede Vacante

Commemorative coin for the Sede Vacante - MMXIII=2013

From March 1st until a Pope is elected, the Vatican State is considered to be without any kind of leadership, even though some of the top Cardinals are still making sure work goes on as best as possible. But this is what is referred to as Sede Vacante (Vacant Seat.) Commemorative coins are issued to honor this situation and most of the Vatican stamps in circulation are over-printed with the words Sede Vacante, and they become a hot item among philatelists. The Pope is not just the leader of the Catholic Church world wide, but also the Bishop of Rome, and hopefully within a week, we should have a new Pontiff as the Cardinals start their conclave on Tuesday. 

Commemorative stamps for the Sede Vacante period

The Sistine chapel is being prepared to welcome the 115 Cardinal electors, and even the outfit which the new Pope will wear upon his election, is being displayed by the Gammarelli Religious Clothing Store, but more about this tomorrow.