By Hannah Brockhaus
Vatican City, Apr 26, 2025 / 09:30 am
Pope Francis was buried Saturday in the Basilica of St. Mary Major after his coffin crossed the center of Rome, marking the pontiff’s final goodbye to the Eternal City.
After the celebration of the funeral Mass in St. Peter’s Square, the pope’s coffin left the Vatican via the Perugino Gate at 12:30 p.m. local time. The simple wooden casket was transported in a popemobile-style pickup truck and greeted to applause and cheers of “goodbye, Pope Francis,” and “good journey, Francis,” from a small crowd gathered just outside the Vatican.
The white car carrying the papal coffin winded slowly through Rome, the city of which Pope Francis was bishop, past the white Monument to Victory Emmanuel II, the Roman Forum, and the Colosseum, to arrive at Via Merulana, a wide street leading to the main square of the Basilica of St. Mary Major.
The Vatican and local authorities estimate 150,000 people lined Rome’s streets to wave goodbye to Pope Francis’ coffin. Around 400,000 people attended the funeral Mass.
As the bells of the basilica tolled, a group of poor from Rome were on the steps of the basilica to meet the papal funeral procession and to pay their final respects to the pope who loved them so much.
A small procession of cardinals, bishops, priests, and other Vatican officials led the way into the Marian basilica and to the side chapel housing Francis’ favorite icon of Mary, “Salus Populi Romani,” where four young children laid baskets of white roses before the historic image.
Discover the sacred resting place of Pope Francis at the historic Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome. This revered burial site, one of the four papal basilicas in the city, now holds the remains of the beloved pontiff, in accordance with his final wishes.
The tomb, a beautiful white Italian marble slab, bears the inscription “Franciscus” in Latin, a fitting tribute to the revered leader. Above the tomb hangs his iconic silver pectoral cross, depicting the Good Shepherd guiding a lost sheep.
Nestled in a niche of the basilica’s left-side aisle, Pope Francis’ final resting place is situated between the Pauline Chapel, home to the revered “Salus Populi Romani” icon, and the Sforza Chapel. An altar dedicated to St. Francis of Assisi is located nearby, honoring the pontiff’s namesake.
Throughout his papacy, Pope Francis frequented the Basilica of St. Mary Major, seeking solace and guidance before international trips by praying before the “Salus Populi Romani” icon. His deep devotion to Mary, Protection of the Roman People, is evident in his choice of burial site.
The private burial ceremony, steeped in tradition and reverence, included solemn prayers for the soul of Pope Francis, acknowledging his good works and seeking divine mercy for his sins. The chanting of the Our Father and other sacred invocations in Latin filled the sacred space.
