After the funeral Mass in St. Peter's Basilica, there will be a funeral procession to the Basilica of St. Mary Major, where Francis will be buried. The procession is expected to last nearly four hours. The public will have the opportunity to line the streets for a final good bye.
The procession will first leave the Vatican to the south and pass under the Janiculum Hill through the Principe Amedeo Savoia Aosta tunnel, which leads to the bridge of the same name. Once across the Tiber, the pontiff's coffin will follow Corso Vittorio Emmanuele II to Piazza Venezia. It will then cross the Imperial Forum and the ruins of ancient Rome, pass by the Colosseum and continue along Via Lanica, before turning left and going up Via Merulana to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major.
"A group of poor and needy people will be present on the steps leading to the Basilica of St. Mary Major" to receive the coffin of Pope Francis just before his burial on Saturday, April 26, the Holy See announced on April 24, 2025. This initiative is intended as a symbol, to pay tribute to the Argentine Pope who, from the beginning of his pontificate, desired "a poor Church for the poor."
Visit to the tomb
Starting on Sunday, St. Mary Major will be open for the faithful to visit the Pope's tomb.
The tomb is made of marble from Liguria, with the sole inscription "FRANCISCUS" — in accordance with the instructions expressed in the Pope's testament.
There is also a reproduction of his pectoral cross, which shows Christ the Good Shepherd. (Photo above.)
Vatican News noted that Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas announced Pope Francis’ desire to be buried in a tomb made from the “stone of Liguria, the land of his grandparents.”
It is precisely in the small town of Cogorno from that region that a plaque of slate - a fine-grained grey, green or bluish metamorphic rock - commemorates Bergoglio’s great grandfather, Vincenzo Sivori.
Sivori travelled from Italy to Argentina in the 1800s. There, he raised his family, including his granddaughter Regina Maria Sivori: Pope Francis' mother.
The mayor of the town, Enrica Sommariva, described her surprise when she heard that the Pope had requested stone from his grandparents' region for his tomb.
In 2017, the Holy Father was able to meet the cousins from this side of the family.
The tomb lies in an alcove in the side aisle between the Sforza Chapel and the Pauline Chapel, which houses the famous Marian icon of the Salus Populi Romani.
The tomb is also near the altar of St. Francis.
Rosaries in the Square
Thursday evening, the Rosary will be presided over by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, former Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization.
Friday evening, it will be presided over by Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem.
More details about the burial site are in the article below:
