The Vatican is putting its collection of papal vehicles in the spotlight with a new exhibition dedicated to the iconic popemobile.
“A Century of the Popemobile” opened this week, showcasing eight Mercedes-Benz vehicles used by popes dating back to 1930.
The exhibition is housed in a glass pavilion in the Vatican Museums’ Giardino Quadrato. Ahead of its opening, Pope Leo XIV reflected on how the popemobile has changed over the decades.
“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,” Pope Leo told exhibition organizers during a private Vatican meeting on Wednesday, according to Religion News Service.
“In this way, your work has helped facilitate the church’s mission of reaching out to people and bringing a message of faith, hope and charity to the world,” he added.
The exhibition runs through January. It does not include every vehicle used as a popemobile, focusing instead on Mercedes-Benz models, which make up the majority of the papal fleet.
“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,” Barbara Jatta, director of the Vatican Museums, told the outlet.
The oldest vehicle on display is the first official popemobile: a black Nürburg 460 limousine presented to Pope Pius XI in 1930 by the German automaker. Pius XI served as pope from 1922 to 1939.
“It 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,” Sandro Barbagallo, curator of the Historical Collections Department at the Vatican Museums, told CNN.
“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 the popemobile era, pontiffs traveled in horse-drawn carriages or in gestatorial chairs carried on the shoulders of attendants.
The press coined the term “popemobile” during Pope Paul VI’s 1965 visit to New York, where he traveled in a custom Lincoln Continental.
The exhibition also features Pope John XXIII’s 1960 Mercedes-Benz 300 d Landaulet. Its removable rear side windows signaled a growing effort to bring popes into closer view of the faithful.
Mercedes-Benz gave Pope Paul VI a 600 Pullman Landaulet in 1965, another vehicle included in the exhibition. Its raised roof and folding top made it easier for crowds to see the pontiff as he traveled in the open car.
For Pope John Paul II’s 1980 visit to Germany, Mercedes-Benz built a more modern model: the 230 G. The vehicle was equipped with a transparent Plexiglas dome that protected the pope while keeping him visible to onlookers.
Pope Leo also highlighted the first electric popemobile, presented to Pope Francis in 2024. Francis was often called the “Green Pope” because of his advocacy for environmental protection.
“In this spirit, I encourage you to continue placing technological innovation at the service of human dignity, care for creation and the common good,” Pope Leo said.
