Pope Francis’ Camera Sells for $7.5 Million

A Leica M-A camera once owned by Pope Francis has sold for $7.49 million at a charity auction in Vienna, marking one of the highest prices ever achieved for a Leica model.

The event was organized by Leica, which confirmed that all proceeds will support the late Pope’s charitable foundation.

The camera had originally been valued at between €60,000 and €70,000, roughly $69,000 to $80,000.

The final sale price far surpassed expectations, making it the third most expensive Leica camera in history. Only a 1923 prototype that sold for $16.59 million and another model from the same year that reached $8.3 million last June have exceeded it.

This particular camera carries the serial number 5000000, a number Leica reserves for exclusive editions gifted to distinguished figures. It was presented to Pope Francis in 2024. The auction was planned earlier, but the pope’s death in April led to a delay.

Leica’s head of sales, Alexander Sedlak, described the event as one of the company’s most exciting auctions, although the buyer has not been identified.

The auction also featured another rare Leica: an M3 gifted to Queen Elizabeth II in 1958 by former German president Theodor Heuss. It sold for €156,000, around $180,000, exceeding initial estimates.