The head of Catholic Church, Pope Francis recently had a historic and memorable first time encounter with superhero character, Spider-Man at the Vatican.

The heroic Spider-Man dropped in on Pope Francis’ general audience at the Vatican on Wednesday.

A man dressed in a full, skin-tight, red, black and blue costume of the comic book and film character – including head cover – sat in the VIP section of the audience in Vatican’s San Damaso Courtyard.

He sat quietly next to a priest dressed in black who appeared to be unperturbed by the colourful character in the next seat.

The man behind the mask turned out to be Mattia Villardita, 27, from northern Italy. He was given a place in the VIP section because of his work dressing up in superhero costumes and visiting sick children in hospitals.

At the end of the audience, he was introduced to the pope and gave the pontiff a Spider-Man mask.

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