Hundreds of thousands of visitors expected for month-long display of remains of 13th-century saint
Saint Francis of Assisi’s skeleton is going on full public display from Sunday for the first time, in a move that is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Inside a nitrogen-filled plexiglass case with the Latin inscription “Corpus Sancti Francisci” (the body of Saint Francis), the remains are being shown in the Italian hillside town’s Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi.
St Francis, who died on 3 October 1226, founded the Franciscan order after renouncing his wealth and devoting his life to the poor.
Giulio Cesareo, the director of communications for the Franciscan convent in Assisi, said he hoped the display could be “a meaningful experience” for believers and non-believers alike.
