Last Friday, 14 August, MaltaPost issued a stamp bearing a face value of €2. The stamp will feature the portrait of St John Bosco.

John Melchior Bosco was born on 16 August 1815 in the hamlet of Becchi within the district of Morialdo, a provincial town of Castelnuovo d'Asti (known today as Castelnuovo Don Bosco) in Italy. He dedicated his life to help and educate abandoned youths of his time and founded the Salesian Congregation and the Salesian Sisters. He also founded schools and was a pioneer in trade and education. Don Bosco left a significant mark on the Catholic and civil history of Italy. He is considered a great educator, promoter of reading and a defender of the Catholic faith. Indeed, he is considered as one of the great Italian saints of the 19th century. Today, the Salesians of Don Bosco continue to serve the Church and the young in many parts of the world, including Malta.

The stamp is part of a painting which is held at Savio College, Dingli painted by Austin Camilleri and will be issued in sheets of 10 stamps. Each stamp measures 44mm x 31mm with a perforation of 13.9 x 14 (comb.) and the sheet measures 186mm x 119mm bearing the Maltese Crosses watermark. Printex Limited produced them in the offset process and the issue consists of 60,000 stamps.

The stamps are available from all Post Offices in Malta and Gozo, online at www.maltaphilately.com or by mail from the Philatelic Bureau, MaltaPost plc, 305, Qormi Road, Marsa, MTP 1001; Telephone: 2596 1740, e-mail: [email protected]