1939: Two papal guards are watching over the Vatican stove.  The role of the stove is essential in every election: in case of a non-unanimous vote, the ballots are burned in this stove with dampened straw which produces black smoke. This informs the people of Rome that the pope has not yet been elected. In case of a unanimous vote, the ballots are burned without the straw and the people see white smoke coming from the Vatican and so learn that the new pope has been elected unanimously. Photo: Keystone-France, Gamma-Keystone Via Getty Images / KEYSTONE-FRANCE
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