From the cathedral of St. Peter in the Vatican, keys to paradise are stolen from paradise

The Vatican officials reported on Thursday that an investigation of the case of the abduction of the marble hand cut off the statue of St. Peter is being investigated. The statue scorched in the XIII century stands at the entrance to the lower grottoes of St. Peter's Basilica, where the Apostle was buried.

Officials said the hand disappeared a few days ago. The first version of the investigation was vandalism, but when they did not find a hand during the examination of the temple, the conclusion was made that the fragment of the statue was abducted by attackers.

Symbolic keys from paradise were clamped in the holy hand. According to the gospel legend, Jesus Christ handed the Apostle Peter the Keys from the Kingdom of Heaven in order to strengthen him in the matter of spiritual patronage to believers.

It is believed that the author of the statue was Arnolfo Di Cambio, who also created the famous bronze statue of Peter, standing under the altar inside the basilica. The tourist program usually includes a visit to grottoes in which the ancient necropolis is located, reports Reuters . Therefore, thousands of people pass by every day.

According to the Church, St. Peter is buried in the necropolis of the main Cathedral of the Vatican. The bones of the apostle were found during excavations of the Nero circus, where it was subjected to martyrdom. Pope Pavel VI announced that the bones of an elderly person found during excavations on the territory of the ancient basilica belonged to St. Peter. The Cathedral of St. Peter began to build in 326 the first Christian Emperor Konstantin at the place where Peter, crucified in the circus of Nero, was allegedly buried.

Meanwhile, the investigation in the case of the search for the hand of the marble Peter continues. The Italian police connected to the Vatican law enforcement officers investigating theft.