For the first time in 110 years, the tomb of St. Teresa of Avila, who died in 1582, was opened to allow medical experts and scientists to examine her remains. Even though she has been encased inside her marble-covered silver coffin for nearly 450 years, her body has not decayed to any noticeable degree. This is remarkable, given that no special effort was made to preserve her body at the time of her death. “Today the tomb of St. Teresa was opened and we have verified that it is in the same condition as when it was last opened in 1914,” Father Marco Chiesa of the Carmelite Monastery of Alba de Tormes, where the remains of St. Teresa are kept, said in an August 28 announcement published in the National Catholic Register. St. Teresa died in the village of Alba de Tormes in the province of Salamanca in western Spain on October 4, 1582, and her body has been at rest there ever since. The new examination of St. Teresa’s remains, which took place over the last four days of August, was carried out under the watchful eye of the Diocese of Avila, and of the Order of the Discalced Carmelites that has been responsible for keeping her coffin safe and secure for more than four centuries. Permission to open her tomb and exhume her body was granted in July by Pope Francis, in response to a request from the Bishop of Salamanca, Luis Retana. Read moreSection: NewsHistory & ArchaeologyHistoryFamous PeopleRead Later