This striking 1946 Vatican City Espresso pair commemorates the 400th anniversary of the opening of the Council of Trent (1545).
The Lire 12 brown-red stamp features Cardinal Contarini after a Renaissance bust, framed in richly engraved scrollwork with the inscription CONCILIVM OECVMENICVM XIX.
The Lire 6 green stamp depicts Cardinal Gian Matteo Giberti, Bishop of Verona, rendered in warm brown tones against a deep green ornamental frame.
Printed by the Istituto Poligrafico dello Stato, Rome, both stamps showcase Corrado Mezzana’s masterful design and represent one of Vatican philately’s most admired commemorative Espresso issues.
Highly desirable for collectors of Vatican classics, religious history themes, and engraved portraiture.