VATICAN CITY, April 16 (Reuters) - Pope John Paul’s”Fisherman’s Ring”, a gold signet ring that was a symbol of his authority and which countless pilgrims kissed over the years, was destroyed on Saturday in a symbolic break with the past.
The destruction of the ring and lead seal became part of the ritual after a pope’s death both as a practical measure to stop unscrupulous people forging papal documents and as a symbol of the end of the pope’s dominion over the Catholic Church.
