Unveiled to the World
Image idea: crowds at the reopening ceremony in March 2017.
On 22 March 2017, the restored shrine was revealed at a ceremony attended by church leaders and the Greek Prime Minister. The black soot was gone, and so was the iron frame from 1947.
The Greek Orthodox Patriarch called the work a gift to the whole world. Pilgrims could now see the shrine looking as it did around 200 years ago.
Long queues formed as soon as the doors opened. For many visitors, seeing the clean, bright stone for the first time was an emotional moment.