Papal medallion given to people during visit features Capitol, U.N.

Published: 2008-04-24

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- People who had the opportunity to greet Pope Benedict XVI personally during his U.S. visit received a special bronze commemorative medallion featuring a bas-relief of a bust of the pope on the front. On the obverse are bas-reliefs of the U.S. Capitol on the right, commemorating the Washington leg of his visit, and of the U.N. building in New York on the left, with the U.N. logo superimposed over it, to mark his U.S. stop in New York. There the chief event was a major papal speech on human rights at U.N. headquarters. Pope Benedict distributed the medallions to men, women and children who had been chosen to greet him at a variety of venues in Washington and New York during his April 15-20 trip to the United States, his first U.S. visit as pope. The front of the medallion, which is about two inches in diameter, shows the pope, with the Latin words "Benedictus XVI Pontifex Maximus" (Benedict XVI, Supreme Pontiff) encircling the papal sculpture. The obverse carries an inscription in Latin that translates: "Visits U.S. Cities and the United Nations April 15-20, 2008."

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