Archpriest Cassar

In February and March 2002 The Sunday Times published four letters (one was mine) about the issue of a stamp depicting a Gozitan personality in the 'Personalities' the following October.

In one (February 24, 2002) Maltapost public relations and philatelic executive Tony Barbaro Sant wrote it had been decided the previous year to include a Gozitan personality - Archpriest Saverio Cassar - but the final decision on whether a stamp in this set would depict Archpriest Cassar had yet to be taken.

This was because it was still uncertain, even among Gozitans, whether the only painting purportedly showing Archpriest Cassar was really his portrait or that of an ancestor of the Depiro family. In the absence of conclusive proof, the issue of this particular stamp was in doubt.

On October 18, 2002, Maltapost released the year's personalities stamp issue which included Archbishop Cassar, who was born at Ghajnsielem in 1746.

I formally thanked Maltapost's Philatelic Bureau and the Design Advisory Board for honouring this Gozitan patriot and expressed my wish that one day a monument to him would be erected (The Sunday Times, October 27, 2002).

Archbishop Cassar, who led the uprising against the French in Gozo in 1798 and acted as head of the provisional government for Gozo for two years, deserved to be honoured.

Last December 14 was the bicentenary of Archpriest Cassar's death. On the initiative of the Ministry for Gozo a monument to Archpriest Cassar will be officially inaugurated on a date yet to be announced.

The monument will include a bust and a bronze relief on a base of Gozitan marble. The monument is the work of artist Michael Camilleri Cauchi, with bronze work carried out by Joe Chetcuti.