Thousands gather in Rome as Pope Francis laid to rest

Vatican City: The funeral of Pope Francis, who passed away on Monday, concluded on Saturday with the ringing of the bells at St. Peter’s Basilica in St. Peter’s Square. The bells signaled the end of the two-hour and ten-minute-long service.

Large crowds lined the streets of Rome to pay their respects as the white popemobile carrying Pope Francis’ coffin made its way across the Vatican, accompanied by a motorcycle escort, toward his chosen final resting place.

The procession continued across the River Tiber to the fifth-century Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, a church frequently visited by Pope Francis during his 12-year papal tenure. Bells rang at the basilica before the coffin arrived.

The cortege also passed the Colosseum, one of Rome’s most historic landmarks, as it moved through the Italian capital.