April, Martínez Somalo read Psalm 41:2 before the coffin was closed and the Mass of Requiem begun. On 16 April, at the last meeting of the College of Cardinals before the conclave to elect a new pope began on 18 April, Martínez Somalo used a silver hammer to crush John Paul's ring and destroyed his lead seal as well. Health and death He had bypass surgery in 2003 and a heart attack in July 2021. He died at his home in Vatican City on 10 August 2021 at the age of 94. Decorations Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (1972) Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic (1983) Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (1985) References External links Letter to Cardinal Martínez Somalo from Pope Benedict on his resignation as Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church 1927 births 2021 deaths Protodeacons 21st-century Spanish cardinals Apostolic Nuncios to Colombia Spanish Roman Catholic titular archbishops Members of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments Members of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life Camerlengos of the Holy Roman Church Cardinals created by Pope John Paul II Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy alumni Pontifical Lateran University alumni Pontifical Gregorian University alumni 20th-century Spanish cardinals People from La Rioja Recipients of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Recipients of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic