AP PHOTOS: Faithful join the line to pay their final respects to Pope Francis

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People line up as they enter St. Peter’s Basilica to pay their respects to Pope Francis lying in state, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

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People wait in line to view Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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Faithful pay their respects to Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

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Nuns leave after entering the St. Peter’s Basilica to pay their respects to Pope Francis lying in state, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

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People wait in line in St. Peter’s Square to view Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

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People wait in line to view Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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Faithful wait in line under the rain to view Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican,Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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Italian Carabinieri paramilitary police stand beneath the Bernini Colonnade near St.Peter’s Basilica where Pope Francis is lying in state, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

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People wait in line to view Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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A nun reads a book as she waits in line with others to view Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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A group of four nuns, center left, wait in line with other people to view Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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People look at booklets as they wait in line to view Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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Faithful pay their respects to Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

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People line up as they enter St. Peter’s Basilica to pay their respects to Pope Francis lying in state, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

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People line up as they enter St. Peter’s Basilica to pay their respects to Pope Francis lying in state, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

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People wait in line under the rain to enter St.Peter’s Basilica to view Pope Francis lying in state, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

VATICAN CITY (AP) — So many mourners lined up to see Pope Francis lying in state in a simple wooden coffin inside St. Peter’s Basilica that the Vatican kept the doors open all night to accommodate the higher-than-expected turnout.

The basilica, which was closed for just an hour Thursday morning for cleaning, is bathed in a hushed silence as mourners from across the globe make a slow, shuffling procession up the main aisle to pay their last respects to Francis, who died Monday after a stroke.

The hours spent in the long line along the stately via della Conciliazione through St. Peter’s Square and through the Holy Door into the basilica have allowed mourners to find community.

This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.