The first photos of the deceased Pope Francis were published by the Vatican as funeral rites are underway.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, presided over the first ritual, known as the “rite of the ascertainment of death and deposition in the coffin.”
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The ceremony took place Monday evening at a chapel in Casa Santa Marta, where Swiss guards stood watch over the body of the deceased pontiff.
Vatican Media released photos and video of the ceremony on Tuesday morning, the first showing Pope Francis following his death on Monday morning.
The rite, attended by members of the pontiff’s family, lasted an hour and included blessings of the body, hymns, and the chance for those in attendance to pay respects.
He was dressed in a papal miter and pallium and lay in a plain wooden casket, as he had requested prior to his death. His body stayed overnight in the chapel as the Church prepared for his lying in state.
The death certificate prepared by the director of health services for the Vatican reports that the pope died of a stroke that subsequently led to a coma and cardiovascular collapse.
Farrell was joined by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, and Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, the substitute for general affairs for the secretary of state, when they sealed the papal apartments in accordance with protocol for the period of sedevacante, Latin for the chair of St. Peter being empty.
Pope Francis did not spend much time in the papal apartments during his pontificate, instead choosing to reside in a less luxurious guesthouse within Vatican City.
The College of Cardinals gathered Tuesday morning to begin a series of “general congregations” ahead of the conclave to elect the next pope. Approximately 60 cardinals were able to make the first general congregation, according to the Holy See Press Office.
Members of the college from over 90 countries are making their way to Vatican City to participate in the meetings, which serve as a preliminary gathering to discuss the future of the Catholic Church. The cardinals, often called “princes of the church,” are expected to debate and discern what qualities are needed in the next pope.
Pope Francis’ funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday in St. Peter’s Square.
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Afterward, Francis will be entombed at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, a church he visited before and after almost all his apostolic journeys to foreign nations.
The late pontiff left behind specific instructions for his burial, writing in his instructions: “The tomb must be in the earth; simple, without special adornment, and with only the inscription: Franciscus.”