By Dan Sullivan
Catholic Herald

Vatican comes to Duluth, Minn.

DULUTH, Minn. -- Some people collect ordinary items, like baseball cards, and others reach for the unusual. Fr. Richard Kunst, a priest of the Diocese of Duluth, Minn., is among those rare collectors of the unusual.

For some nine years, Kunst has gathered the largest privately owned collection of Catholic religious artifacts in North America.

Before he began collecting church-related artifacts, Kunst gathered celebrity memorabilia.

In the "Vatican Comes to Duluth," held Oct. 29 - 31, this collection was on display at The College of St. Scholastica in Duluth. The exhibition served as both an educational opportunity and a fund raiser for Catholic schools and seminarian education in the Duluth diocese.

Some pieces in the 1,000-item collection date back to the early 13th century.

"The purpose of the event is to help the public gain knowledge and appreciation of the Vatican," said Rhonda Hughes, chair of the event's steering committee. "It's a once and a lifetime viewing."

Seventh and eighth graders from Cathedral School in Superior were among the estimated 800 regional parochial school students who attended the exhibit Oct. 29. Hughes gave the seventh graders a tour and Kunst guided eighth graders. During the tour, Kunst posed the question, "Why do popes wear white?" With the students stumped, Kunst answered, "Every pope wears white because of Pope Pius V. He was a Dominican and Dominican's wear white. Every pope after Pope Pius V has worn white."

Included among the displays were two Swiss Guard uniforms. Kunst owns one of these uniforms, dating back to the papacy of Pope Pius X, 1903-1914. The other shown was lent to Kunst in an exchange with the Vatican and is an example of a uniform worn by a modern day Swiss Guard.

"In 2006, the Swiss Guard is celebrating their 500th anniversary," Kunst said. "They don't have a Swiss Guard uniform from the time of Pius X and asked if we would lend ours to their yearlong exhibit for 2006. It's rare that the Vatican lends out Swiss Guard uniforms. There is only one other in the Western Hemisphere and that's in Washington, D.C., at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center."

Current policy, Kunst said, requires Swiss Guards to return their uniforms if they serve under five years. "The tour of duty is actually two years, so most guys wouldn't be able to keep them," he said.

The uniform owned by Kunst was purchased from an antiques dealer in Chicago. "What probably happened is that somebody had served for more than five years, was able to get the uniform and moved to the United States," he said.

Besides the uniforms, the exhibit included manuscripts signed by every pope since 1667. There were also a number of papal clothing items, including zucchettos, or white skull caps, worn by Pope Pius XII and Pope John Paul II.

Among the manuscripts in the collection was one from by Pope Sixtus IV, signed in 1471. Sixtus IV was responsible for building the Sistine Chapel, which is named for him.

Kunst's collection of papal signatures includes one from the man who went on to become Pope John Paul I. The signature of Albino Luciani, Kunst believes, could be the rarest papal signature in the last 500 years. Luciani had been a cardinal for only a short time prior to his 1978 election as pope. John Paul I died just 33 days into his papacy. The note displayed was originally given to an Austrian government worker, signed on the back of Luciani photo, while he was bishop. A handwritten letter and prayer by Blessed Mother Teresa was also displayed.

Kunst often uses modern technology to build his papal collection. "Through the Internet, it's very easy to make connections with European dealers," he said. "There are a lot of manuscript dealers. If you deal with manuscript dealers in Europe, you are a lot more likely to get papal-related or church-related manuscripts."

Through the Internet Kunst is in constant communication with both manuscript and antiques dealers around the world who sell church-related items. Kunst has built a reputation and dealers often contact him before an article is available publicly. He explained that there are only a few other collectors of papal or church-related items.

"Because it's a unique hobby, we know each other," Kunst said. "That's thanks in large part because of the Internet."

The Pope John Paul II Cultural Center has approached Kunst to display his collection. "I haven't answered them yet," he said.

Besides Kunst, Duluth's Bishop Dennis Schnurr also lent items for the exhibit. Shown were vestments worn by John Paul II during the 1993 World Youth Day in Denver. The chasuble and stole were given to the then-Msgr. Schnurr, who served as executive director of the World Youth Day event.

Following their tour, Cathedral School eighth graders Dan Tracy and Lauren Wojciechowski said they enjoyed the exhibition. Tracy, who collects sports cards, was amazed at the scope of this private collection.

"You really have to have a lot of dedication to do something like this," he said.

Wojciechowski said, after viewing all the items, that she would like to visit the Vatican. "I would love to see the pope and all the art at the Vatican," she said.

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© Superior Catholic Herald, 2004