Photographs: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
The 115 cardinals responsible for electing a new Pope are currently inside the most beautiful chapel in the world, holding the most furiously guarded conclave on the planet.
Inside the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, the cardinals will cast their secret vote and choose a new leader for the 1.2 billion strong Roman Catholic population.
We bring you some breathtaking images from inside the Sistine Chapel -- a venue also known for the timeless masterpieces of mighty Italian painters like Raphael and Michelangelo.
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images
A member of The Swiss Guard closes the gate at the Arch of the Bells at St Peter's Basilica.
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Osservatore Romano/Reuters
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Stefano Rellandini/Reuters
Part of the Sistine Chapel is pictured at the Vatican.
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Stefano Rellandini/Reuters
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Kai Pfaffenbach KP/Reuters
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Kai Pfaffenbach KP/Reuters
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Pier Paolo Cito/Reuters
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Pier Paolo Cito/Reuters
The operation, to clean marble works and frescoes on the side walls telling the stories of Moses and of Christ, enabled scholars to say with greater precision who painted what.
Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Stefano Rellandini/Reuters
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Stefano Rellandini/Reuters
Security guards stand inside the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican.
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Stefano Rellandini/Reuters
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Stefano Rellandini/Reuters
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Max Rossi/Reuters
Members of the fire and rescue service set a chimney on the roof of the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican.
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Osservatore Romano/Reuters
Workers prepare the Sistine Chapel for the conclave at the Vatican.
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Inside the SECRET chamber of power at the Vatican
Photographs: Andrew Winning/Reuters
Staff at the Victoria and Albert Museum hang a tapestry designed by Raphael titled 'The Healing of the Lame Ma' in central London, September 3, 2010. Four of ten tapestries designed by Raphael for the Sistine Chapel are on show for the first time ever alongside their full sized designs; known as the Raphael Cartoons; which have been on display at the V & A since 1865.
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