The funeral of Coptic Pope Shenouda III has taken place in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.

科普特教皇欣诺达三世的葬礼在埃及首都开罗举行。

St Mark's cathedral was packed with mourners paying their respects to the 88-year-old pope who died on Saturday.

He was the spiritual leader of Egypt's Copts, who make up 10% of the country's population and are the Middle East's largest Christian¹ community.

Pope Shenouda's body was then flown to the Nile Delta² northwest of Cairo and buried in a remote desert monastery³.

Thousands of people greeted the motorcade carrying his body when it arrived just before sunset, and military police struggled to control the mourners trying to get into the monastery.

The patriarch（族长，元老） spent more than three years in exile there in the 1980s when the late Egyptian President Anwar Sadat accused him of fomenting⁴（煽动，挑起） sectarian strife⁵（冲突，争吵） .

Two months ago he asked to be interred⁶ at St Bishoy monastery on his death - he was laid to rest in a white marble tomb with a cross on top.

The ceiling of the chamber⁷ is covered with pictures of Jesus Christ, the Virgin⁸ Mary and saints, and it also has small windows to let in some light.

Copts were given time off work to prepare for the funeral, and a national day of mourning has been declared.