The 750th anniversary of the death of St. Thomas Aquinas

The design features St. Thomas Aquinas in the foreground in the vestments of the Dominican Order to which he belonged. In his left hand he holds a volume of his most important work, the Summa Theologiae, and in the other a pen. A shining sun stands out on the saint’s chest, a symbol of his great wisdom. Among the various titles he received, he is most widely known as the “Angelic Doctor”, which is quoted below and which glorifies his exceptional purity of soul and body. In the background on the left is the lily, a symbol of chastity, and the Church of St. Thomas of Roccasecca, the first religious building in the world built in honor of St. Thomas Aquinas, declared a saint on July 18, 1323 by Pope John XXII. At the top is the inscription “CITTÀ DEL VATICANO”. At the left is the year “1274” and at the right the year “2024” and underneath it are the mintmark “R” and the name of the artist “A. CICCONI”. The coin’s outer ring bears the 12 stars of the European flag.