Item number: M59

Year: AD 1870/80-present (AD 2024)

Material: Gold and Enamel

Size: Order 18.8 x 13.85 / Ribbon 28.06 x 5.95 mm

Weight: 2.04 g

Provenance: La Galerie Numismatique 2023

The fifth highest Papal order is the Order of St. Sylvester. In AD 1841, Pope Gregory XVI reformed the Order of the Golden Spur as an order of merit, with recipients appointed by Papal brief. This reformed order was known as the “Order of St. Sylvester and the Golden Militia.”

Membership was to be confirmed in recognition of significant service rendered to the Church, limited to 150 commanders, 300 Roman knights, and an unlimited number of foreign members. The Order of St. Sylvester mirrors the classes and grades of the Order of St. Gregory the Great and is typically bestowed upon lay members for their active service in the apostolates.

The Order of Saint Sylvester, initially unified with the Order of the Golden Spur, was formally constituted on February 7, AD 1905, by Pope Saint Pius X in his motu proprio, Multum ad excitandos. This act separated the united order into two distinct entities: the Order of Saint Sylvester and the Order of the Golden Spur.

Since AD 1994 women have been admitted to the Order as Dames in the same grades and divisions as men. Pope Saint Pius X also granted Papal knights a place of honor in Papal processions and ecclesiastical ceremonies.

Nomination procedures for this Order vary. Typically, awards are made based on recommendations from Diocesan Bishops, Archbishops, Nuncios, or members of the Roman Curia, recognizing special merit or service. The nomination process involves the local Bishop, who forwards recommendations through the appropriate Apostolic Nuncio to the Cardinal Secretary of State in Rome.

Upon approval, a diploma is issued in Latin (with the candidate’s forenames also translated into Latin where possible), and it is signed in almost every case on behalf of the Roman Pontiff by the Secretary of State of the Vatican. The award also usually requires the payment of a nominal “tax” to cover expenses concerned and support the work of the Church. It may be paid by the recipient or by someone else on his behalf.

Members have no privileges beyond wearing the decoration. Although Vatican reforms no longer confer special status on Papal knights, receiving a Papal knighthood is intended to inspire service among recipients, occasionally extended to non-Catholics. Notably, the Knights of Saint Sylvester retain the privilege of riding a horse inside Saint Peter’s in Rome.

Investitures of the Order may range from simply receiving the diploma to formal or ceremonial presentations, at the discretion of the nominating Bishop. Ceremonies conducted in the Vatican are rare and typically reserved for major public figures, heads of state, or diplomatic officials.

There is no single authoritative source of the membership of the Order of Saint Sylvester. As Papal knighthoods no longer convey special status, they are rarely published in Acta Apostolicae Sedis. Various private associations maintain their own membership lists, and attempts by scholars to compile definitive recipient numbers by country remain incomplete due to the nature of the award.

The order can be divided into two types.

This miniature represents a type II Knight order. It features a gold-enamelled Maltese cross on the obverse, bearing the image of St. Sylvester within a golden outer circlet, accompanied by the inscription ‘SANC. SYLVESTER P. M.’ (Saint Sylvester, Supreme Pontiff). On the reverse side, the year of the Order’s restoration, 1841, is depicted in golden Roman numerals ‘MDCCCXLI,’ encircled by an enameled ring inscribed with ‘1841 Gregorius XVI restituit’ (1841 Gregory XVI restored). Judging by the ribbon and the enameled reverse, this order pertains to the knight class and is classified as type II.

Attire for members varies with rank. The Grand Cross is worn suspended from a broad ribbon over the right shoulder, with a star worn on the left breast. Commanders wear the badge around the neck, while the Knight Commanders also wear a star. Simple Knights wear the badge on the left breast ribbon drape. The uniform, including a black jacket and plumed hat, is worn with a sword and becomes more elaborate with a higher rank. Ladies, however, do not wear the uniform, and the ribbon for a Dame Grand Cross is narrower than that of the Knight Grand Cross.

During that era, many recipients would commission local jewelers to create scaled-down or miniature versions of the insignia for easier portability or as substitutes when official replacements were needed.

物件編號: M59

年代: 公元 1870/80 年至今（公元 2024）

材質: 黃金, 琺瑯

尺寸: 勳章 18.8 x 13.85 ／綬帶 28.06 x 5.95 mm

重量: 2.04 g

來源: 貨幣畫廊 2023

公元1841年，格里高利十六世教宗改革了黃金軍團勳章，將其轉變為一個憑藉教宗指派的功績勳章。這個改革後的勳章被稱為聖西爾維斯特和黃金軍團勳章。將這個中世紀借來的稱號與四世紀教宗聯繫起來的想法，是源於一個虛構的勳章——康士坦丁大帝聲稱得到了同時代的西爾維斯特一世的批准並設立此勳章，自17世紀以來在羅馬享有篡奪的權威。為了終結這種濫用，格里高利十六世建立了真正的聖西爾維斯特騎士頭銜，以表彰對教會所作出的貢獻，該勳章僅限於150名指揮官和300名羅馬騎士，外國人的數量則無限制。聖西爾維斯特勳章與聖格雷戈里大勳章的等級和級別相同，通常授予信徒在使徒中的積極服務。

公元1905年2月7日，教宗聖庇護十世在Multum ad excitandos中正式將聯合勳章分為兩個勳章：聖西爾維斯特勳章和黃金軍團勳章。

自公元1994年以來，婦女以同等等級和分類作為男性被接納為騎士勳章。聖庇護十世也給予教宗騎士在教宗遊行和教會儀式中的榮譽地位。

此勳章的提名程序各有不同。通常情況下，基於教區主教、大主教、教廷駐外使節或羅馬教廷成員的推薦，勳章被授予以表彰特殊的功績或服務。提名程序包括當地主教，由其通過適當的教宗代表向羅馬的國務院擬定提名。獲批准後，將發放一份拉丁文的文憑（候選人的名字亦會盡量譯成拉丁文），由代表羅馬教宗的國務院書記簽署。這個獎項通常還需要支付一筆名義性的“稅款”以支付相關開支並支持教會的工作，可以由接收者自行支付或由他人代為支付。

成員除了佩戴勳章外沒有特權。儘管梵蒂岡改革不再賦予教宗騎士特殊的地位，但獲得教宗騎士頭銜者被鼓勵提供服務。有時非天主教徒也會獲得這個榮譽。值得注意的是，聖西爾維斯特騎士仍然享有在羅馬聖彼得大教堂內騎馬的特權。

授予這個勳章可以僅僅通過接收文憑，也可能進行簡單或正式的授勳儀式，這取決於提名主教的決定。在梵蒂岡很少舉行儀式，通常是為重要的公眾人物、國家元首或其他外交官員而保留的。

沒有單一權威來記錄聖西爾維斯特騎士團的成員。由於教宗騎士頭銜不再具有特殊地位，它們很少被刊登在《教宗通牒》中。一些私人協會保留自己的成員名單，學者試圖按國家編制教宗勳章接收者的數量，但由於獎項的性質，這些列表始終是不完整的。

這個勳章可以分為兩種類型：

此為第二類騎士勳章的迷你版，由金色琺瑯馬耳他十字架組成，正面是聖西爾維斯特的肖像，置於金色外圈中，上方刻有“SANC. SYLVESTER P. M.”（教宗西爾維斯特一世）的銘文。背面是勳章復原的年份1841年，以金色羅馬數字”MDCCCXLI”呈現，並用琺瑯圈圈起，上面刻有“1841 Gregorius XVI restituit.”（1841年，格雷戈里十六世改革）。根據緞帶和背面的琺瑯，這個勳章屬於騎士級別的第二類勳章。

成員的服裝根據級別而有所不同。大十字勳士佩戴在右肩上的寬帶上，左胸佩戴星星。指揮官佩戴在頸部，而二級騎士佩戴星星。簡單的騎士則佩戴在左胸的緞帶上。制服包括黑色外套和帶羽毛的帽子，佩戴劍，並隨著級別的提升變得更加華麗。然而，女士不穿制服，她們的大十字緞帶比騎士大十字更窄。

在那個時代，許多接收者會委託當地的珠寶商製作迷你版本的勳章，以便容易攜帶，或在需要時作為官方替代品。