Leo XIII: The first Italian screening of films made in the Vatican in the late 1800s

For the first time in Italy, a public screening of the preserved films from the late 19th century capturing the life of Leo XIII, the first pope ever immortalized on camera, will take place. The extraordinary event will take place on Sunday, May 26, at Palazzo Pecci in Carpineto Romano, the birthplace of Leo XIII. The historic palace, which has opened its doors to the public only twice in the last 30 years, will be accessible during the entire day on this special occasion.

Gianni Piacitelli Pecci and the Municipality of Carpineto Romano, in collaboration with the Audiovisual Memories of Catholicism (Mac) Foundation and the Cast Research Center of the International Telematic University Uninettuno, have organized an appointment starting at 11 a.m. This event has been chosen as a venue to present Gianluca della Maggiore's volume entitled "Views of the Origins on Leo XIII - Vatican, Biography and Lumière between Myth and History" (Utet University, 2023).

A statement explained that during the event, the importance of preserving Catholic audiovisual discoveries will be discussed in response to Pope Francis' call to be "good custodians of the memory of images" and the troubling backlog in this area will be addressed. The proceedings opened with an address by Msgr. Dario Edoardo Viganò, president of the Mac Foundation and dean of the Faculty of Communication Sciences at UNINETTUNO. He emphasized the extraordinary nature of this day, as for the first time in Italy both Biograph films from 1898 and Lumière films from 1899 to 1902 will be presented. Until now in Italy, the Lumière films have never been dated and attributed accurately. It turns out that these films were made by Francesco De Federicis, the papal photographer, who managed to capture at least 12 shots of Leo XIII over four years. Three of these shots will be on display at Palazzo Pecci.

The films in question possess considerable historical significance, not only because they document the first encounter between the Church and cinema, but more importantly because they embody a characteristic common to Leo XIII and Pope Francis. According to Msgr. Viganò, both pontiffs embraced the audiovisual medium as a means of embracing novelty and ushering in transformative change in the Church's perspective.

Leo XIII's fascination with cinema, culminating in the famous blessing of the camera in the Vatican gardens, can be traced back to his deep interest in the optical sciences and photography. This interest was so significant that Della Maggiore's book reveals an interesting detail: in 1867, when Pope Pecci was still archbishop of Perugia, he wrote a poem dedicated to the Ars fotografica. Later, when he became pope, he included a representation of the photographic art in the fresco dedicated to the blessed fine arts of religion. This fresco, created in 1883, was originally installed in the Gallery of the Candelabra of the Apostolic Palaces and is now in the Vatican Museums.

In 1881 Leo XIII decided to allow scholars access to the Vatican Secret Archives, now known as the Apostolic Archives. This move quickly transformed the archive into one of the most significant centers for historical research globally. Bishop Viganò describes it as a cultural revolution, which Pope Francis continues and modernizes. Pope Francis stresses the importance of expanding our attention to the audiovisual history of the past. Accordingly, he announced plans for the upcoming opening of the Vatican Apostolic Mediatheque, which will complement the Apostolic Archives and Library.