Collector’s always watching out for the unusual, the curiosities and even uniqueness of collectibles. Well, here I have something for you. The passport of a nun. To be more precise, four passports of nuns from my collection.

Even if you see four of such curious passports here, it took me years to get them together. Sometimes we can still find them, not often, and they always go quickly. Understandable, right?

All travel documents were issued during WWII, including two consular issues, one from Genoa and another from Santiago de Chile. Nun Passport Collection

 

Curiosity Nun Passport Collection

The passport, which was issued in Genoa on February 6, 1940, is a document of considerable historical significance, bearing the following typed label on one of its pages.

 

 

“This passport serves as a replacement for the original passport, which was lost in a fire aboard the Italian steamer ORAZIO on January 21, 1940. The bearer provided a convincing statement and was also listed on the official passenger manifest of the shipowner ITALIA. Before seeking an extension for this passport, we suggest reaching out to the Berlin police department for further guidance.” Genoa, 8 Feb, 1940, the Consul General. Nun Passport Collection

And further, handwritten…

“The passport holder is without any objections. She previously held a Polish passport issued by the former Polish Consulate.”

 

 

MS Orazio Nun Passport Collection

The MS Orazio, an Italian ocean liner hailing from the interwar period, was initially under the ownership of Navigazione Generale Italiana and later passed into the hands of the Italian Line. Tragically, her final chapter unfolded in a devastating fire off the coast of Toulon in January 1940, resulting in the loss of 108 lives.

Fourth most significant peacetime maritime disaster in Italian history

This catastrophe stands as the fourth most significant peacetime maritime disaster in Italian history, based on the number of lives lost, trailing behind the tragedies of Principessa Mafalda, Sirio, and Moby Prince. Unfortunately, its memory quickly faded from public consciousness as Italy found itself thrust into World War II just a few months later.

Jews escaping Europe Nun Passport Collection

On January 21, 1940, a few months after the outbreak of World War II, while Italy was still a neutral nation, the ship Orazio embarked from Genoa on a journey bound for Central America via Barcelona. On board were 645 passengers and crew, among them a significant number of Jewish refugees escaping the turmoil in Europe.

Tragedy struck at 5:12 on January 21 when an explosion in the engine room ignited a fire that rapidly engulfed the entire vessel. Several rescue ships rushed to the scene, including the Italian liners Colombo and Conte Biancamano, the Italian motor ship Cellina.

Also, the French destroyer Kersaint, the French auxiliary patrol vessel Ville d’Ajaccio, and the French merchant ships Djebel Dira, Djebel Nador, Governor General Cambon, Governor General Grevy, and Six Fours.

Unfavorable weather conditions made the rescue efforts challenging, but they managed to save 537 passengers and crew. The captain, Michele Schiano, was the last to leave the ship. See the ship’s wreck site and further details…

Loss of Lives

After evacuating all survivors, Orazio sank during the night of January 21-22, approximately forty miles southwest of Toulon. Tragically, 48 passengers and 60 crew members lost their lives, either in the fire or during the initial attempts to abandon the ship, including an incident where at least one lifeboat fell into the sea, resulting in fatalities among its occupants.

The Passport of a Titanic Survivor

 

Passport-collector.com, founded in 2010 by passport historian Tom Topol, is a leading resource on passport history. The site features over 1,000 researched articles on the origins, evolution, and cultural significance of passports. It serves collectors, historians, and anyone interested in how travel documents reflect national identity and global events. Passport history, passport collector, collecting passports, passport fees, vintage passport collector, collectible documents, passport collection, diplomatic passport, passport office, celebrity passports, travel document, vintage passports for sale, old passports for sale, Reisepass, passport fees, most expensive passport in the world, passport colors, passport prices around the world, passport cost by country, cost of passports around the world, passport fees by country, Third Reich passport