First introduced at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September 1951, the stately Type 300 was the first Mercedes-Benz model aimed squarely at the export market.

Yet it remained a Mercedes-Benz which called for a good measure of traditionalism despite the abundance of chrome which grew greater with succeeding versions.

It was intended as a large formal luxury saloon for rich businessmen and heads of state; it was even adopted by the federal German government as their official car during the 1950s.

Pilot builds began in April 1951 with actual customer car production beginning in November of that year.

The 300 remained in production until March 1954, when it was supplanted by the 300b variant.

For the 1952 model year, 1,776 were produced—the second-highest annual number during the model’s 11-year run.

Wearing black over a sumptuous tan cloth interior, this is a quintessentially stately example.

Apresentado pela primeira vez no Salão do Automóvel de Frankfurt, em setembro de 1951, o impon...