On April 26, 2025, Pope Francis was buried in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, fulfilling his express wish to rest next to the image of Our Lady Salus Populi Romani, to whom he professed a deep devotion. This decision, a departure from the tradition of burying popes in the Vatican crypts, reflects his pontificate’s humility and closeness.

The tomb, located in the left aisle of the basilica, between the Pauline Chapel and the Sforza family chapel, features a white Ligurian marble tablet bearing the Latin inscription “FRANCISCUS.” On the wall is a silver reproduction of his pectoral cross with the image of the Good Shepherd, a symbol of his pastoral ministry.

The choice of this location was not accidental. Even before being elected Pope, Jorge Mario Bergoglio regularly visited St. Mary Major. After his election in 2013, his first trip was to this basilica to entrust his pontificate to the Virgin Mary. Furthermore, before and after each apostolic trip, he would pray before the Salus Populi Romani.

The burial ceremony was presided over by Cardinal Camerlengo Kevin Joseph Farrell and attended by family and friends of the pontiff. The funeral procession traveled through the streets of Rome in the popemobile, passing by iconic sites such as the Colosseum and the Imperial Forums, until arriving at the basilica, where it was welcomed by marginalized people, a gesture that symbolizes Francis’s commitment to the excluded.

Since April 27, the tomb has been open to the public, allowing thousands of faithful to pay tribute to the Pope who chose simplicity and Marian devotion as his eternal legacy.