VATICAN CITY STATE
YEAR XXIII OF THE PONTIFICATE OF THE BLESSED POPE JOHN PAUL II (1978-2005)
SYMBOLISM IN RELIGIOUS ART SERIES - THE CHI RHO & ALPHA & OMEGA
ONE-HUNDRED THOUSAND LIRA GOLD COIN GRADED BY NGC PROOF 69 ULTRA CAMEO
OBV: BUST OF JOHN PAUL II IN ZUCCHETTO AND PAPAL MANTUM RIGHT WITHIN CIRCLE WITH SURROUNDING LEGEND.
REV: CHI RHO CHRISTOGRAM WITH ALPHA AND OMEGA LETTERS WITHIN WREATHED LABARUM ; SURROUNDING LEGEND.
KM # 391
THE CHI RHO IS ONE OF THE EARLIEST MONOGRAMS OF CHRIST (CHRISTOGRAM). ACCORDING TO LEGEND, BEFORE THE BATTLE OF THE MILVIAN BRIDGE, THE ROMAN EMPEROR CONSTANTINE AND HIS ARMY SAW THE CHI RHO IN THE SKY. THAT EVENING, CHRIST APPEARED TO HIM IN A DREAM, TELLING THE EMPEROR HE WOULD BE VICTORIUS IF HE CARRIED THE SYMBOL ON HIS LABARUM OR MILITARY STANDARD. IN THE BOOK OF REVELATIONS, CHRIST IS MENTIONED AS BEING, "...THE ALPHA AND OMEGA, THE FIRST AND LAST." THESE CHRISTIAN SYMBOLS WERE ADOPTED BY THE CHRISTIAN EMPERORS OF ROME AND THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH.
SAINT JOHN PAUL THE GREAT (POPE SAINT JOHN PAUL II) (REIGNED 1978-2005), BORN KAROL JOZEF WOJTYLA, REIGNED AS SUPREME PONTIFF OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH AND SOVEREIGN OF VATICAN CITY LONGER THAN ANY OTHER POPE EXCEPT FOR PIUS IX. HE WAS THE ONLY POLISH POPE, AND THE FIRST NON-ITALIAN POPE SINCE 1522. HE BECAME ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL LEADERS OF THE 20th CENTURY AND IS CONSIDERED BY MANY TO HAVE BEEN INTRUMENTAL IN BRINGING AN END TO COMMUNISM IN EUROPE. HE WAS ONE OF THE MOST TRAVELLED WORLD LEADERS IN HISTORY, AND DURING HIS PAPACY HE MADE OVER 129 VISITS TO FOREIGN LANDS (MORE THAN ALL THE PREVIOUS POPES IN TOTAL), AND LOGGING MORE THAN 750,000 MILES. HE IMPROVED RELATIONS WITH MANY FAITHS FOLLOWING A DOCTRINE OF TOLERANCE, UNDERSTANDING, AND COMMON GROUND. THE TITLE "VENERABLE" WAS PROCLAIMED BY HIS SUCCESSOR BENEDICT XVI, AND THE COMMON USAGE OF THE EPITHET "THE GREAT" HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH HIM SINCE HIS PASSING. ON MAY 1, 2011, THE BLESSED POPE JOHN PAUL II RECEIVED BEATIFICATION IN MAY, 2011 FROM THE CHURCH, WHICH WAS THE THIRD OF FOUR STEPS TOWARD CANNONIZATION. THE TRADITIONAL FIVE-YEAR WAITING PERIOD FOR CANONIZATION WAS WAIVED, AND THE PROCESS STARTED SHORTLY AFTER HIS DEATH. TWO MIRACLES HAVE BEEN ATTRIBUTED TO THE INTERVENTION OF POPE JOHN PAUL II, THE SECOND OF WHICH WAS CONFIRMED BY POPE FRANCIS IN 2013. JOHN PAUL II WAS CANONIZED, ALONGSIDE POPE JOHN XXIII, ON APRIL 27, 2014.
CONTAINS 15 GRAMS OF .917 FINE GOLD (.4422 OZ AGW)
28 MM IN DIAMETER
6,000 MINTED
ROME MINT
