The Vatican Museums inaugurated the exhibition "A Century of the Popemobile" on 28 October, marking nearly a century of collaboration between Mercedes-Benz and the Holy See, according to Vatican News.

Vatican News reports that curator Sandro Barbagallo told the opening conference the Popemobile serves a pastoral purpose — allowing the Pope to greet and bless the faithful along the streets.

Museum Director Barbara Jatta writes in the catalogue that the automobile has become more than transport: it lets the Pope be seen and establish direct contact with crowds.

The twist that Culture readers will savor is how un-carlike the story begins.

Vatican News describes the 1930 Nürburg 460 Pullman limousine delivered to Pope Pius XI as a ceremonial state vehicle, with silk brocade, carefully selected wood and metal fittings, and a decorated roof — Wake Up Singapore even reports an armchair covered in raspberry-coloured silk brocade.

The recognizable white Popemobile only arrived in 1980, when Mercedes-Benz built the 230 G with a raised transparent enclosure for Pope John Paul II's visit to Germany.

Wake Up Singapore notes security grew more central after the 1981 assassination attempt in St Peter's Square, pushing later designs toward bullet-resistant glass.

The show's arc is a century of gradual opening-up. According to Vatican News, it starts with Carl Benz's 1886 Patent-Motorwagen, recognized as the first automobile, before reaching the formal Vatican partnership in 1930.

In 1960, Pope John XXIII received a Mercedes-Benz 300 d Landaulet with removable rear side windows, an early step toward closer contact with crowds; in 1965 came the 600 Pullman Landaulet with a raised roof and folding soft top after Paul VI's Holy Land trip.

Wake Up Singapore reports the 2024 delivery of a fully electric, specially modified Mercedes-Benz G 580 — a first that pushes the papal fleet into the electric era.

Among the quirkiest evidence cited is a rule of reverence rather than mechanics.

Vatican News reports that at Mercedes-Benz's Stuttgart facilities, where the historic vehicles are kept, the cars are treated with particular care — and according to Marcus Breitschwerdt, head of Mercedes-Benz Heritage, no one is permitted to sit in the seat reserved for the Pope.

The company also framed an ethical dimension: Vatican News quotes Mercedes representatives describing the demands of comfort and protection, and notes As Langenbrinck's point that the vehicle does not simply take the Pope to his destination but brings him into contact with the wider Christian community.

There is still time to see it in person. Inside Edition reports the exhibition is on display until Jan.

31 at the Vatican Museums, and Wake Up Singapore likewise says visitors can see "A Century of the Popemobile" until 31 January 2027. Wake Up Singapore adds that the show focuses on Mercedes-Benz vehicles, though other manufacturers have produced cars for popes over the years.

Vatican News also highlights the archival side: ANSA Director Luigi Contu explained how the agency's 1945-founded archive helped reconstruct a century of events documenting the Church and the world.

For museum-goers, it is a rare chance to read papal history through upholstery, glasswork and engineering.