Tomb of beloved St. Francis of Assisi restored

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The crypt housing the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi was reopened on Saturday after a restoration cleaned away decades of candle smoke and ash and allowed the original pink stone to shine through again.

It was the first restoration of the crypt since its most recent restyling took place in 1930. The tomb itself, located in the crypt underneath the lower church of Assisi's famed fresco-filled basilica, dates from 1230, four years after St. Francis died.

On Saturday, Franciscan priests and culture ministry officials showed off the results of the 2-month-long restoration, which removed the caked-on soot that had darkened the original pink stones.

Culture undersecretary Francesco Maria Giro said it was a ‘light’ restoration that was nevertheless symbolic, removing the black and restoring the pink, which he said denoted the love and tenderness for which St. Francis is known.

The restoration follows the massive work done to repair the Cimabue and Giotto frescoes in the basilica upstairs that were destroyed in a 1997 earthquake.

Pope Benedict XVI is expected to visit Assisi in October for a day of prayer for peace with other religious leaders. The visit will commemorate the 25th anniversary of a similar day of prayer for peace in Assisi that was presided over by Pope John Paul II.