The embalmed corpses of two Catholic saints, including that of the venerated Italian friar Padre Pio have gone on display in St Peter's basilica.
Nearly half a century after this death, the body of Padre Pio was moved for the first time from its resting place in a sanctuary at San Giovanni Rotondo in southern Italy.
It has been brought to the Vatican at the request of Pope Francis as part of events to mark the ongoing Catholic Jubilee Year.
The corpses of the two saints will be on display in St Peter's until 11 February.
Padre Pio was revered during his lifetime (1887-1968) and his popularity has continued to grow since his death, particularly in Italy, where mini-statues and pictures of the mystical Capuchin friar are ubiquitous.
He was accompanied on the trip to St Peter's by another Saint Leopold Mandic (1866-1942), a Croatian Capuchin who was, like Padre Pio, celebrated for his skill in receiving confessions - a quality Pope Francis wants to champion during the Jubilee year.
Canonised under Pope John-Paul II, Padre Pio's brand of popular, mystical Catholicism was less popular with the Vatican authorities when he was alive.
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