Pope Benedict XVI: the body exhibited in the Vatican with a special technique of preservation of the body

There are already over 15 thousand people present in Piazza San Pietro in Rome, lining up to enter the basilica to pay homage to Joseph Ratzinger, the Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. The body of the Pope Emeritus will be exposed for three days, until the funeral that will be celebrated on Thursday, January 5.

Religious groups, families and individuals to pay homage to the Pope Emeritus

They are groups of men and women religious but also families, individuals. Everyone passes through the metal detector and, despite the great influx, the line flows neatly, inside Piazza San Pietro (Rome).

The Prefecture of Rome expects a large influx of people

The Prefect of Rome (Italy), has predicted that in these days of exposure of the body of Pope Ratzinger in the Vatican (2-4 January), at least 30-35,000 people will flow a day, while for the funeral that will be celebrated on January 5 the forecast is for a presence of 60,000 faithful.

Post-mortem treatment

This  post-mortem treatment, as explained by experts, consists of hygienic care of preservation of the body after death. However, thanatopraxis is not to be confused with perpetual embalming but is instead a method of temporary conservation.

How the Pope’s body is preserved

The body of Pope Benedict XVI is preserved with the technique of thanatopraxis. This is possible through an injection into the arterial system of a preservative fluid and a series of aesthetic treatments, to preserve an intact image of the person, thus eliminating the decomposition process for a few weeks.

The first Pope Emeritus

Joseph Ratzinger died on December 31. Recall that Benedict XVI, was the first Pope Emeritus after his historic resignation from the pontificate of February 2013. Although he is not the first Pope to have renounced the office, Benedict XVI is the first to have exercised the faculty of resignation as governed by Canon 332 of the Code of Canon Law, in force since 1983.