Vatican Celebrates 100 Years of Popemobiles with Historic Mercedes-Benz Exhibition

The Vatican has launched a new exhibition titled 'A Century of the Popemobile,' featuring eight historic Mercedes-Benz vehicles that have transported popes since 1930. The exhibit, housed in a glass pavilion in the Vatican Museums' Giardino Quadrato, opened this week and will run until January.

Pope Leo XIV, who spoke about the evolution of the popemobile ahead of the launch, described how the vehicle has transformed from a simple means of transportation into an instrument of encounter. 'Over the decades, the popemobile has evolved from a means of transportation into an instrument of encounter, enabling the pontiff to draw closer to the faithful during pastoral visits and public celebrations,' the Pope said during a private meeting with organizers on Wednesday, according to Religion News Service. He added that the work has helped facilitate the church's mission of reaching out to people with a message of faith, hope, and charity.

The exhibition showcases only Mercedes-Benz models, as the German manufacturer has supplied most of the popemobiles over the past century. Barbara Jatta, director of the Vatican Museums, told the outlet that 'over 100 years, each pope has received a popemobile from Mercedes-Benz and used it as a vehicle of dialogue, as a vehicle of sharing and blessing and seeing the people and traveling.'

The oldest vehicle on display is the first official popemobile—a black Nürburg 460 limousine gifted in 1930 to Pope Pius XI, who served from 1922 until 1939, by Mercedes-Benz. Sandro Barbagallo, curator of the Historical Collections Department at the Vatican Museums, told CNN that the car 'was specifically built, designed, and prepared for papal use, so much so that just by comparing it, you can see how it transitions from the serial to the unique.' He added that from this point, it is clear how all the cars were then made precisely to allow the pope to be seen, but to be seen and to see in total safety and, I would even say, comfort.

Before Pope Pius XI, popes used horse-drawn carriages and gestatorial chairs, which were carried aloft on the shoulders of attendants. The exhibition highlights the technological and design evolution of the popemobile, reflecting the changing needs of the papacy and the importance of connecting with the faithful.

The 'A Century of the Popemobile' exhibition offers visitors a glimpse into the history and significance of these iconic vehicles, which have become a symbol of the papacy's engagement with the modern world. It is a testament to the enduring partnership between the Vatican and Mercedes-Benz, and a celebration of a century of papal mobility.