The post-mortem practice involves three blows to the head with a special hammer.
Many rituals follow the death of a pope, such as the sealing of his apartment and the destruction of his papal ring. But another interesting practice involves tapping the dead religious leader’s forehead with a silver hammer.
It is the camerlengo’s responsibility to perform the ritual by gently tapping the Pope’s forehead three times and calling him by his first name. This act may seem odd, but it is the traditional way of making sure a pope has died.
For Francis, this means Cardinal Kevin Farrell will have the job of applying the traditional taps. The Annulus Piscatoris or piscatory ring is also destroyed following the Pope’s passing.
The ring represents the first pope, St Peter, who was a fisherman, and the remnants of the destroyed ring are used to make a new one for a late pope’s successor.
When the humble Pope Francis became the leader of the Catholic Church in 2013, he opted for a ring made of gilded silver rather than the traditional ring of yellow gold, sticking to his principles of modesty over wealth.
Certain steps lead up to the ring being destroyed, reported the Express. The ring is first inspected to make sure it’s authentic, before the camerlengo scratches a cross onto it.
It is then broken on a block of lead with a mallet. The destruction symbolises the end of a pope’s rule, with the creation of a new ring representing a new pope assuming the papacy.
The camerlengo will place the new ring on the finger of the new pope’s right hand when he takes up the position.
Pope Francis died on Easter Monday at the age of 88 after suffering a stroke, which put him in a coma and led to irreversible heart failure.
He had been recovering in his apartment after being hospitalised for five weeks with pneumonia. He made his last public appearance on Easter Sunday, delivering an Easter blessing and making what would be his final greeting to followers in St Peter’s Square.
In his will, Francis confirmed he would be buried at St Mary Major Basilica, which is outside the Vatican and home to his favourite icon of the Virgin Mary. He is the first pope in over a century to be buried outside the Vatican.
Before and after every foreign trip, Francis would go to the basilica to pray before the Byzantine-style painting, which features an image of Mary draped in a blue robe holding the infant Jesus.
Francis stopped at the basilica on his way home from the Gemelli hospital on March 23, after his 38-day stay, to deliver flowers to be placed before Mary.
He returned on Saturday, April 12, to pray before the Madonna for what was the last time. Cardinals on Tuesday, April 22, took their first decisions after the pope’s death, setting Saturday as the date for his funeral.
The cardinals met for the first time on Tuesday in the Vatican’s synod hall to plan the next steps before the start of a conclave to choose Francis’ successor.
They set the funeral for Saturday at 10am local time (9am BST) in St Peter’s Square. It will be led by the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.
They also decided that Catholic faithful can begin paying their final respects from tomorrow, Wednesday, April 23, when Francis’ casket is brought into St Peter’s Basilica.
