Pope Francis’s funeral to be held on Saturday as Vatican releases images of his open coffin

Pope Francis’s funeral will take place on Saturday at 10:00 local time (09:00 BST, 08:00 GMT), the Vatican confirms.

The Vatican has also released images of the Pope in an open coffin, dressed in a red robe with the papal mitre on his head and a rosary in his hands.

Pope Francis’s coffin will be taken to St Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday for the public to pay their respects.

He will be taken to St Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday morning, where his casket will remain until burial for the public to pay their respects, according to BBC.

The pontiff’s death has prompted an outpouring of grief from Catholics across the globe.

Read more: Breaking! Pope Francis is dead

From South Sudan to Argentina, Poland to the Philippines, the BBC reports from across five continents.

The basilica has a double colonnade and a circular piazza in front and is bordered by palaces and gardens.

The Unesco World Heritage site was erected over the tomb of St Peter the Apostle and is one of the largest religious buildings in the world.

It was designed by Italian architects and artists Donato Bramante, Raphael, Michelangelo, Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Carlo Maderno and completed in 1626.

Remains of the first basilica, founded by Constantine in the 4th century, still exist beneath the current basilica.

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