Vatican releases first photos of Pope Francis in open coffin
The Vatican has published the first photographs of Pope Francis in his open coffin, dressed in a red robe with the papal mitre on his head and a rosary in his hand.
The images were taken in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta, Francis’ residence at the Vatican where he died on Monday, age 88.
Cardinals met on Tuesday to set the date for Pope Francis’ funeral, as world leaders from US President Donald Trump to Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy said they would attend to honour the Catholic leader.
The first so-called “general congregation”, called following the death on Monday of Francis, signals the start of a centuries-old tradition that culminates in the election by cardinals of a new pontiff within three weeks.
The Pope was seen during a service on Monday evening in the chapel of Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican residence where he lived during his 12-year papacy, and where he died.
Francis was wearing his red papal vestments, a mitre on his head and had a rosary between his fingers.
Tributes have poured in from around the globe for Francis, a liberal reformer who took over following the resignation of German theologian Benedict XVI in 2013.
His home country, Argentina, prepared for a week of national mourning while India began three days of state mourning on Tuesday – a rare honour for a foreign religious leader in the world’s most populous nation. Heads of state and royalty are expected for his funeral, due to be held at St Peter’s Basilica, with Trump and France’s Emmanuel Macron the first to announce they would attend.
