Pope Francis has passed to a new throne.
The Pope died on Monday, April 22 after a stroke that followed double pneumonia earlier this year. He was 88.
His was a pontificate of firsts: he was the first Latin American Pope, the first Argentinian, the first Jesuit. And the ceremonies to mark his passing were also novel.
Pope Francis on a 2014 visit to Korea. His Papacy has had plenty of popular support.
His body was due to lie in state for three days from Tuesday, April 23, unusually in an open coffin, which will be sealed in a ceremony at 8pm on Friday, April 25.
Popes had traditionally been buried in three coffins. A lead coffin to keep the pontiff's remains intact, sandwiched between inner cedar (symbolic of humility and mortality) and an outer oak coffin to represent strength.
Pope Francis will be buried in one casket, made of wood and lined with zinc. His funeral - a major gathering of political and religious leaders - was due to be held on Saturday, April 26.
An historic conclave ballot. The series of votes is complex and can be lengthy.
Now, the age-old tradition of the conclave to choose the next Pope will begin.
Any man baptised a Catholic can be chosen, but there’s already a shortlist of favourites for the role. The 135 eligible voting members (those under 80, minus another member who resigned) of the 252-strong College of Cardinals are likely to meet soon after May 5 and must convene within 20 days of the Papacy falling vacant.
In the Sistine Chapel the cardinals will seclude themselves (and these days wait for a scan for electronic bugs) before a complex series of votes take place - a maximum of four a day - to produce a run-off election with a Pope chosen with a two-thirds majority.
Then the white smoke will famously signal that the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics have a new leader.
And another figure with a largely local and religious profile will become an historic colossus.
And a collectible one.
Here are 10 extraordinary papal collectibles.
10. A Papal red carpet
The Pope on the red carpet outside Westminster Cathedral in London.
Pope Benedict XVI came to London in 2010.
Amazingly, he was the first ever leader of the Catholic Church to make an official state visit to the UK.
Pope Adrian IV, whose short papal reign from 1154 to 1159 is the only English papacy, was born in Hertfordshire, just north of London.
And when Henry VIII was excommunicated by Pope Paul III and the Church of England broke from Rome that rather put a dampener on relations.
Pope Benedict was born Joseph Ratzinger in Bavaria, Germany.
He was chosen as Pope in 2005, and when he stood down in 2013 - citing his age - he was only the second Pope not to die in office.
This red carpet was laid before Westminster Cathedral - the largest Catholic church in the UK - and walked on by Benedict while he met youngsters.
At 14 feet by 10 feet, it's a substantial relic.
If you’d like to add a touch of holiness to your flooring, you can buy it for £15,000 right now at Paul Fraser Collectibles.
A bright red carpet for the Pope's visit.
9. Pope Pius XII’s skullcap
No Pope can avoid the temporal world, but Pope Pius XII had a particularly tumultuous world to navigate.
The Catholic Church is renowned for its ceremonials, and Popes have a plethora of special clothes to don as part of their work.
They include this zucchetto skullcap worn by Pope Pius XII.
The headpieces are colour coded - black for a priest, purple for a bishop, cardinals wear red, and only the Pope can wear white.
Pius XII started a tradition that has seen a few of these caps enter the open collecting market. When he was given a new one he gave away the one he currently used as a gift.
Pius XII was Pope from 1939 until 1958, and his conduct - attempted impartiality - during World War II has been the subject of debate and controversy.
These caps now make thousands of dollars routinely, and you can add this one to your collection for £6,995 through Paul Fraser Collectibles.
Pope Francis has proved particularly popular, and one of his zucchettos sold for $113,210 via an eBay auction in 2014.
Catholic clothing is often heavily symbolic, like the Pope's white hat. You can own this example; tap the image to find out more.
8. A papal iPad
This Papal iPad, sold in 2013, like many of these items, to benefit charities. Image Castels.
The Catholic Church is among the longest lasting organisations we have.
So, it’s very old.
But it’s also contemporary, modern, and with a growing future - particularly outside Europe.
So, of course the Pope would need a tablet to check his email on, though it’s unlikely Francis ran the @Pontifex twitter account by himself.
This example, complete with useful inscription - “His Holiness Francisco. Servizio Internet Vatican, March 2013” - sold for $30,500 at a charity auction in 2015.
7. It wasn’t me! Napoleon’s Papal denial letter
Napoleon didn't get along with Popes.
Just as Francis passed to a better world, a letter that tells a story of the Papacy in a very different time was heading to auction.
In it, Napoleon Bonaparte denied that he had had the Pope (Pius VII) kidnapped in 1809.
French troops detained Pius for five years as Napoleon’s imperial France took over most of Europe, including the Papal States of pre-unification Italy.
Anti-Catholic and anti-clerical thought was a major driver of the French Revolution, and though Napoleon was no Jacobin he wanted a French church in French hands.
Nevertheless, he writes: “It was without my orders and against my will that the Pope was taken out of Rome; it is again without my orders and against my will that he is being brought into France.
“But I was only informed of this 10 or 12 days after it had already been carried out. From the moment I learn that the Pope is staying in a fixed location, and that my intentions can be made known in time and carried out, I will consider what measures I must take.”
Napoleon is a highly collectible figure, and the perfect timing of the auction make a €12,000 - €15,000 estimate look conservative.
6. A Pope’s bike
A championship bike in Argentinian colours for the Argentinian Pope.
Popes get given a lot of gifts. Many end up in official Vatican collections and museums. But there’s also a steady stream of charity auctions.
In March 2024, a Pinarello bike was spotted at an auction site with a €30,000 estimate.
The bike, refinished in Argentinian blue and white, was traced to Egan Bernal. The Colombian cyclist had given the bike to the Pope not long after Egan won the Giro d’Italia.
Specialist cycling magazines failed to get a quote out of the Vatican but were confident the machine matched Egan’s, along with a signed jersey that was also given to the Pope.
5. Pope Benedict XVI’s VW Golf
The VW finally ended up in a casino, as worldly as it gets.
What’s in a name? Or a title? Quite a lot when it's the Papal title.
When Benjamin Halbe, a German student, bought an old VW Golf he struck a seam of gold that was only revealed when he checked the registration documents.
Joseph Ratzinger had been a Cardinal when he bought the nippy little hatchback. But Benjamin was able to sell it as the car of the new Pope and get a 21-times return on his investment to secure £128,000 for the car online.
It ended up on display in a casino.
4. Pope Francis’ Lamborghini Huracan
For me? The Pope gets another gift from an Italian luxury maker.
Italy is a very Catholic country still. And it’s still the home of the world’s best sports cars.
So, the Pope was given an outrageous Lamborghini Huracan in Vatican City colours especially made for the head of the Church.
Not needing a supercar to get around in, the Pope kindly donated this 2017 gift to a charity auction to help victims of war in Syria.
Pope John Paul II had previously been similarly generous with the final ever Ferrari Enzo that had been gifted to him by the maker.
Francis’s car made $950,000.
John Paul’s Enzo brought in over $6 million for tsunami relief in 2005.
3. Pope Francis’ Harley-Davidson
There's no evidence Pope Francis ever took this Hog for a ride. Image courtesy Sotheby's RM.
I’m sorry, Pope Francis’ what?
Another generous gift that passed briefly through the Vatican’s hands on the way to a lucrative sale to benefit good causes.
The great American bike did a good job, making over $325,000 when it was sold in 2014, more than would be made by a comparable, non-Papal bike.
You may wonder if Popes really need all these freebies. Does the Pope get a salary? They are entitled to around $32,000 a month currently, though Francis never took any money from the Church says the Vatican.
2. Pope Paul VI’s jewels
Though he left a relatively minor historical footprint, Pope Paul VI's decision to gift jewellery to the UN was significant for the institution of the Papacy.
A glittering and extremely precious cross has twice been a centrepiece item in listed sales of Paul VI’s jewellery.
The items were listed in 2011 on eBay, with the seller expecting about $800,000.
The items came with Vatican approved provenance, and had real historic significance. Paul’s decision to donate them to the UN to be sold to fund relief work perhaps marks the start of this slew of gifted, auctioned pieces.
At one point, the US stunt motorcyclist Evel Knievel owned them.
1. Pope Paul II’s signet
Paul II had a reputation for enjoying the finer things in life.
One of the most intimate items we’ve seen come to auction is this gold signet ring, made especially for Paul II (1464-1471).
It’s engraved PAULUS II PONTIFEX MAXIMUS and set with a sardonyx intaglio bezel bearing a likeness of Saints Peter and Paul.
Sotheby’s auctioned it for £36,500 ($47,182) in 2007. A bargain price for a ring belonging to one of the most powerful figures of the 15th century.
Venice-born Paul II may not have approved of all these charity donations. He commissioned a particularly spectacular tiara for himself. Some of his most notable achievements were as a patron of Renaissance artists.
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