Vatican, City State. A 29Th International Eucharistic Congress At Sydney, Australia Medal 1928

(Medaglia commemorativa del 29° Congresso Eucaristico Internazionale a Sydney, Australia 1928). In silvered bronze, obverse illustrating the right-facing bust of Pope Pius XI, inscribed "PIVS XI" at the left and "PONT. MAX." at the right, engraver marked "W.J.A." at the base of the bust, reverse illustrating St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney, Australia, inscribed "29th INTERNATIONAL EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS SYDNEY SEPt. 1928" at the left and illustrating the 29th International Eucharistic Congress insignia above, engraver marked "AMOR" below the cathedral, measuring 39.8 mm (w) x 46.7 mm (h) inclusive of its integral ring, silvering wear and contact marks evident on the Pope's face, original ribbon, very fine.

Footnote: In 1928, Sydney played host to the 29th International Eucharistic Congress. It was a spectacular occasion for the Catholic Church, encompassing a week-long celebration of Catholic faith, from September 2-9. The Congress opened with the consecration of the newly completed St Mary's Cathedral and culminated in the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, where the Sacred Host (a wafer that had been blessed by Catholic priests and was believed to contain the presence of Christ) was processed through the streets of Sydney. Both the secular and Catholic press estimated that crowds of over 500,000 Sydneysiders witnessed this procession, the largest religious spectacle seen in Australia at that time. International Eucharistic Congresses had been held since 1881, when the first one occurred in Lille, France. From 1922, the Congresses were held every two years, only interrupted by the Second World War. The choice of Sydney as the site for the 29th Eucharistic Congress was due to representations made by the Apostolic Delegate to Australia, Bartolomeo Cataneo. He had been in Rome in 1925 as part of a 70-member Holy Year pilgrimage group, the first to travel from Australia. Pope Pius XI had been deeply impressed by the Australian pilgrims' commitment to travel such a long way and agreed that Sydney would be ideal for the 29th Eucharistic Congress. This was the first time that an International Eucharistic Congress had been held outside of Europe or the United States. Hosting the 29th Eucharistic Congress was quite an honour for Sydney's Catholic community, and indeed for Sydney itself, although some Australian Protestants did not see it that way. Protestants were particularly perturbed by the final procession of the Congress, decrying that it was idolatrous, given the Catholic belief in the presence of Christ in the Sacred Host. A number of Protestant bodies, including the Protestant Federation and the Presbytery of Sydney, called for the Congress to be prohibited. Concern for the smooth proceedings of the Congress was such that all police leave was cancelled.