Vatican Gendarmes, 1925 (colour litho)

Carabinieri Pontificii; police in uniform from the armed forces of the Pope; formed by Pope Pius VII (1742-1823) shortly after his return in 1814 from imprisonment in France; responsible for guarding the interior of the Apostolic Palace and patrolling the Vatican Gardens; the full dress uniform, seen here in the figure on the right, resembles the Napoleonic Imperial Guard; the uniform of the policeman on the left resembles the Italian Carabinieri; from a series of illustrations of life in the Vatican, produced for the French market by Liebig as advertising trade cards; Liebig's meat extract, manufactured in Uruguay by Fray Bentos, became by the late 19th century a staple food in European homes and was extensively used in World War II;