By Lizzie Edmonds
PUBLISHED: 14:50 EST, 24 November 2013 | UPDATED: 16:57 EST, 24 November 2013
The Vatican publicly unveiled a handful of bone fragments thought to belong to St Peter for the first time today.
Thousands of worshippers packed St Peter's Square to catch a glimpse of the bronze chest containing the bones.
The nine pieces were kept inside the display case on the side of the altar during a mass commemorating the end of the Vatican's year-long celebration of the Christian faith.
Pope Francis prayed before the fragments at the start of the service and then clutched the case in his arms for several minutes after his homily.
'It's not as if pilgrims who go to the altar [of Peter's tomb] think that in that moment in which they profess their faith that below them are the relics of Peter, or of another or another still,' he said.
'They go there to profess the faith.'
THE FRAGMENTS OF BONE DISCOVERED UNDER ST PETER'S BASILICA THAT CREATED GREAT DEBATE
The nine fragments were found during excavations under St. Peter's Basilica.
In 1939 routine alterations under the floor of St Peter's unearthed the incredible find.
During excavations, a funerary monument with a casket built in honor of Peter and an engraving in Greek that read 'Petros eni,' or 'Peter is here' was found.
Archeologist Margherita Guarducci asked for remains found in the casket to be tested.
She found that they belonged to a man who died in his 60s and was buried in purple cloth.
She reported her findings to Paul VI.
During a General Audience on 26 June 1968, he said: 'New investigations, most patient and accurate, were subsequently carried out with the results that we, comforted by the judgment of qualified, prudent and competent people, believe are positive.
'The relics of Saint Peter have been identified in a way we believe convincing.'
Top Vatican Jesuits and other archaeologists strongly denied the claim.
Author Bruno Bartoloni said in his book, 'No Pope had ever permitted an exhaustive study - partly because a 1,000-year-old curse attested by secret and apocalyptic documents, threatened anyone who disturbed the peace of Peter's tomb with the worst possible misfortune.'
Some sources have said that after years of analysis it became apparent the bones were three different people and several animals.
During the excavations, archaeologists also discovered a whole street of Roman mausoleums and ornate family tombs of both pagans and Christians dating to the early centuries AD.
Margherita Guarducci also found that the relics were given to one of the basilica workers, who stored them in a shoe box in a cupboard.
They were presented to Pope Paul VI in 1971 but have not been seen in public since.
The relics were discovered during excavations under St. Peter's Basilica in the years following the death of Pope Pius XI.
He had asked to be buried in the grottoes where dozens of popes are buried, according to the 2012 book The Ears of the Vatican written by veteran Vatican correspondent Bruno Bartoloni.
When archaeologist Margherita Guarducci discovered an inscription near the excavated tomb reading 'Petros eni', or 'Peter is here', she asked for the fragments to be tested.
She found they belonged to a male, aged between 60 and 70 who was buried in a purple, gold-threaded cloth.
She reported her findings to Paul VI who later proclaimed that there was a 'convincing' argument the bones belonged to Peter.
Top Vatican Jesuits and other archaeologists strongly denied the claim, but had little recourse.
'No Pope had ever permitted an exhaustive study, partly because a 1,000-year-old curse attested by secret and apocalyptic documents, threatened anyone who disturbed the peace of Peter's tomb with the worst possible misfortune,' author Bartoloni wrote.
The Vatican newspaper, l'Osservatore Romano, published excerpts of the book last year, giving his account a degree of official sanction.
In 1971, Paul VI was given an urn containing the relics - which were kept inside the private papal chapel inside the Apostolic Palace and exhibited for the pope's private veneration each June 29 for the feast of St Peter and Paul.
Today marked the first time they were shown in public.
THE FIRST POPE: SAINT PETER, ONE OF THE TWELVE APOSTLES OF JESUS CHRIST
Saint Peter, artists impression right, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ - according to the New Testament.
He is traditionally considered to be the first bishop and Pope by the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and Oriental Orthodoxy.
He was the son of John. His brother Andrew was also an apostle.
According to New Testament accounts, Peter was one of twelve apostles chosen by Jesus. He was with Jesus during events witnessed by only a few apostles.
According to the Gospels, he confessed Jesus as the Messiah, was part of Jesus' inner circle, walked on water, denied Jesus, and preached on the day of Pentecost.
Peter is believed to have been crucified in Rome under Emperor Nero Augustus Caesar.
It is traditionally held that he was crucified upside down at his own request, as he thought he was not worth of being crucified in the same way as Jesus Christ.
Catholic tradition holds that Saint Peter's site of crucifixion is located in the Clementine Chapel.
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