Short history of Dienas' Philatelic Bureau

For more than a century, the Dienas have been carrying on the expertising business with great accuracy, defending and preserving the genuineness of Italian and foreign philately, and representing an unique case in the history of philately in which four generations of experts have participated.

Emilio Diena was the founder of a dynasty of philatelic experts (Mario, Alberto, Enzo and Raffaele have followed), the pioneer of a systematic method of research in philately for his scientific, critical and philological approach in this field. His exhaustive research allowed him to extend and spread the knowledge of Italian stamps.

In 1894 he published his first work in Modena, I Francobolli del Ducato di Modena e delle Province Modenesi e le marche del Ducato stesso per giornali esteri, followed by Les timbres-poste des Romagnes (Brussels 1898), A History of the Postage Stamps of Sicily (London 1904), Note sui francobolli del Governo Provvisorio di Parma (1913), and I Francobolli del Regno di Napoli (1932).

From 1919 he contributed to the magazine Il Corriere Filatelico, where his most remarkable research works were published.

He took part as a member of the jury at the first international exhibition held in Paris in 1892: following that, he was President of many philatelic exhibitions at the national and international level for 46 years.

He was a member of the most distinguished Philatelic Societies in the world, including the Berliner Philatelisten Klub von 1888, the Collector's Club of New York , the American Philatelic Society , etc.

He founded the Società Filatelica Italiana and the Federazione fra le Società Filateliche Italiane (The Italian Federation of Philatelic Society).

He was President and principal co-ordinator of the committee responsible for the editing of the Catalogo Storico descrittivo dei francobolli d'Italia (1923). This was later used as a model for the publication of the Italian and foreign stamps catalogues that followed.

Owing to his philatelic authority and competence, the Treccani encyclopaedia referred to him under the heading "stamps".

He was honoured with the Lindenberg Medal in 1906, the Tapling Medal in 1929, and the Crawford Medal of the Royal Philatelic Society in 1932, for his publication on I Francobolli del Regno di Napoli e i due provvisori da Mezzo Tornese of 1860. In 1920, in Buenos Aires, he judged the entire exhibition as the only member of the jury. In 1921, he was inscribed in The Roll of Distinguished Philatelists, which is the greatest recognition in philately.

When Emilio died ( 9 th October 1841 ), Mario Diena , his eldest son, first became secretary of the Federazione fra le Società Filateliche Italiane, then President. He was one of the signatories of the Italian Golden Book of Philately, the Albo d'Oro della filatelia italiana, and of the Roll of distinguished Philatelists in 1956. He became a member of the expert committees of the world's most important juries. He was honoured with the Strandell medal, awarded for the first time to an Italian philatelist.

In order to complete Mario Diena's professional background, it is necessary to mention his research work and studies concerning the cancellations and seals of the Pontifical State and Lombardo-Veneto, which appeared on the magazines Il Corriere Filatelico (from 1927, to 1938) and Italia Filatelica (from 1928 to 1949).

Alberto Diena, Emilio's second son, published valuable research works over a period of many years. Just to mention a few, those on the precancelled stamps of the Pontifical State, on the 5 and 20 cent stamps of the Neapolitan Provinces, on the postal and philatelic history of Libya, and on the Italian military Post during the 3 rd war of independence. He contributed to several magazines such as the Corriere filatelico, Italia Filatelica, and Il Collezionista.

He was philatelic consultant to numerous Italian postal Administrations and also to the Vatican and S. Marino, President of Rome's Associazione Filatelica Italiana since 1944, and he was one of the first members of the Albo d'Oro, the Roll of Fame and the American Philatelic Society. He served the most important international and national philatelic exhibitions, and his presence was requested everywhere: it meant a guarantee of skill and complete impartiality of judgement.

Enzo Diena, the son of Alberto, began his activity in the philatelic bureau in 1946, next to his father and his uncle. As a very young and talented journalist, he contributed to several daily newspapers such as Il Tempo and Il Messaggero and to several philatelic magazines such as Italia Filatelica , for which he was also the editor, and Il Collezionista.

For his competence and his brilliant journalistic merits he was frequently asked to edit catalogues or write prefaces of philatelic works.

He wrote a long article ( Storia del francobollo ) on a volume of the well-known Franco Maria Ricci's collection, entitled La Bella Posta. He also co-operated in the editing of Carlrichard Brühl's monumental Geschichte der Philatelie, published in 1985, and he himself published Un secolo di francobolli italiani, and two biographies of Emilio and Alberto Diena: Emilio Diena una vita per la filatelia and Alberto Diena un filatelista, la sua vita, una sua opera inedita.

In 1992, he edited and led for several months the programme Filatelia on the TG1, the most highly respected national news program on Italian television.

He acted as philatelic advisor and a member of several Committees at the Postal Administration, at the Giunta d'Arte of the Poligrafico dello Stato and at the Vatican Advisory Committee.

The organizations he belonged to include the A.I.E.P., of which he was President from 1987 and Honorary President from 1993. He was also a foundation member and life-member of the A.S.C.A.T., international jury, secretary and President of the F.I.P., life-member of the American Philatelic Society since 1990, honorary member of the Associazione Italiana di Storia Postale since 1996, member of the Royal Philatelic Society of London since 1960, and a member of the Federazione fra le società filateliche italiane.

Some of his awards include the signing of the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists in 1977, the joining of the Albo d'Oro in 1967, the Luff Award in 1981, the Lindenberg Medaille in 1984; the titles of Commendatore dell'Ordine di S. Agata in 1977, of Equitem Commendatorem Ordinis Sancti Gregori Magni, assigned by John Paul II in 1979 and the nominee of Officier de l'Ordre des Grimaldi in 1993. Since 1977 he was the only Italian expert of the Pr­üfordnung und Prüferliste of the Bundes der Philatelistischen Prüfer, the German association of federal experts.

Enzo Diena served innumerable international and national juries on various philatelic exhibitions since the Polska in 1960 in Warsaw; he received important awards worldwide, not only for his knowledge and competence, but also for the perfect management of this delicate task.

After more than a century, the family affair continues with Raffaele Maria. He is an expert of the court and a member of juries at national exhibitions; he co-operates with the Italian postal administration and is a member of the Smithsonian Postal Museum Council in Washington . He represents the Dienas' fourth generation and has assisted his father in the expertising service and study of stamps since 1990, until his father's passing away on 21 st January 2000. Furthermore Roberta Diena, contributes to the library's historical archive, and deals with the contacts abroad. She collaborates with Bolaffi's magazine Il Collezionista as correspondent writing philatelic articles. She's an U.S.F.I. member.