Rome hosts global celebrations and unveils new Vespa mural.
Italy’s iconic scooter is marking its 80th anniversary this month with a major international gathering in Rome, alongside the unveiling of a large new mural in the capital’s Pigneto district.
The four-day anniversary event, titled Vespa Roma 2026 – 80 Years of an Icon, will take place at the Foro Italico from 25-28 June, with “Vespisti” enthusiasts expected to arrive from around the world.
Origins
Vespa celebrates 80 years since the first patent was filed by Piaggio on 23 April 1946. The anniversary marks a journey from practical postwar transport to global cultural icon, with total production approaching 20 million units.
The design was the work of aeronautical engineer Corradino D’Ascanio, who had little affection for conventional motorcycles and whose misgivings produced a masterpiece of practical engineering.
Vespa advertising campaign from the 1980s
He created the first motorcycle with a monocoque body, dispensing with a tubular steel frame, placing the gearchange on the handlebars, and drawing on aircraft landing gear for the front suspension.
When Enrico Piaggio saw the prototype, he reportedly exclaimed, “It looks like a wasp!” – Sembra una vespa! – giving the vehicle its name.
Production began in Pontedera, Tuscany, with an initial hand-beaten batch of 60 units. By 1947 output had grown to 20,000 units per year, and by 1956 – just a decade after its birth – the one millionth Vespa had rolled off the production line.
More than two million units have been produced in the last decade alone, and the brand remains one of the most recognisable in the world.
Today Vespa is manufactured at three sites: in Pontedera for European and Western markets, in Vinh Phuc in Vietnam for the Far East, and at the Baramati plant in India.
Rome mural
Alongside the main event, Vespa has commissioned a new piece of urban art in Rome’s Pigneto neighbourhood, at Via Fortebraccio 19.
Vespa mural by Federico Epis in Pigneto
Italian illustrator Federico Epis has created a monumental mural, in collaboration with urban creativity company Outdoora.
The work reinterprets the imagery of Roman Holiday in a contemporary register, depicting two young people on a Vespa Primavera 80th edition against a backdrop featuring Rome landmarks including the dome of St Peter’s.
Photos courtesy Vespa
