2654 SOVEREIGN MILITARY ORDER OF MALTA - The coat of arms of the Order

2654 Coat of arms of the SMOM

The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta (Latin: Supremus Ordo Militaris Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani Rhodius et Melitensis), also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM) or Order of Malta, is a Catholic religious order traditionally of military, chivalrous and noble nature. Founded as the Knights Hospitaller circa 1099 in Jerusalem by Gerard Thom, is the world's oldest surviving chivalric order, and probably the best known.

1357 ITALY (Lazio) - Via della Luce in Rome

Via della Luce (the Way of Light) is a street in the Trastevere neighborhood in Rome, which took its name from the church of Santa Maria della Luce (Saint Mary of the Light). It was previously named Via delle Rimesse (the Way of Remittances), and also Via dei Morticelli. It received the current name following a miraculous event which took place in the year 1730. Legend has it that in a house located in the nearby alley Due Mole, which had on a outer wall an image of Madonna and Child, a blind man cried out for help because he heard noises like falling masonry. Suddenly the man "saw" on the wall the image of the Virgin surrounded by light and went out crying, mad with joy, "Light, light!" The image became the object of great devotion, and ultimately was detached from the wall of the house and transported in the church of St. Salvatore (Holy Saviour), which was rebuilt and dedicated to St. Mary of the Light.