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Thousands of mourners from the region came to the palace in Franceville to file before the coffin draped in the Gabonese flag.
Many brought animals, including goat kids, chickens and even gazelles, or bananas or rush mats as a traditional funeral gift to the family.
Bongo died in a Spanish clinic last week. His state funeral was a grandiose affair Tuesday in Libreville, attended by France's President Nicolas Sarkozy and rulers from a dozen other African nations.
The burial of the 73-year-old who ruled the oil-rich nation of 1.5 million people for 41 years was billed as an "intimate" family affair, but about 1,000 people gathered at the palace in Franceville.
Ali Ben Bongo, the defence minister widely tipped to succeed his father, was there, with Bongo's daughter Pascaline, who ran his cabinet and manages his personal fortune, with Bongo's elder brother Andjoua-Fidele.
Interim president Rose Francine Rogombe, the Senate speaker, also attended with Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe Ndong and many other members of the cabinet.
After the ceremony, Bongo's body was laid to rest in a mausoleum built inside the palace, a source close to the family said.
According to the constitutional court, the government's functions ceased once the interim president had been sworn in, but Ndong and his cabinet remained operational to oversee the country during the funeral.
The key question since Bongo's death is who will succeed a man who maintained a controversially close relationship with France, but whose last years were overshadowed by corruption charges.
Gabonese and French leaders have praised Bongo for bringing about national unity of his country, which is an ethnic patchwork where he comes from a minority group. All have called for that unity to be treated as a part of Bongo's legacy.
The funeral orations in Libreville steered clear of the issue of the succession, but the late Bongo's close aides and the government have been acting fast to avoid a power vacuum.
Ali Ben Bongo, 50, came to the fore to speak on behalf of the family, and in recent days has been frequently appeared in Gabonese media flanking the interim president.
Sources close to the government said that Ndong could resign on Friday, but it was more likely he will do so after a cabinet meeting on Monday, where the interior ministry is due to present a timetable for a presidential election.
Constitutionally, a vote should take place within 45 days of the swearing-in of the interim head of state. There is widespread agreement however that the voters' roll needs to be updated.
"For the moment, civil servants are working to a timetable of 90 days, or even more," said a source close to the presidency. Since Bongo died, several sources have said that the current voter's roll is not credible.
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Many brought animals, including goat kids, chickens and even gazelles, or bananas or rush mats as a traditional funeral gift to the family.
Bongo died in a Spanish clinic last week. His state funeral was a grandiose affair Tuesday in Libreville, attended by France's President Nicolas Sarkozy and rulers from a dozen other African nations.
The burial of the 73-year-old who ruled the oil-rich nation of 1.5 million people for 41 years was billed as an "intimate" family affair, but about 1,000 people gathered at the palace in Franceville.
Ali Ben Bongo, the defence minister widely tipped to succeed his father, was there, with Bongo's daughter Pascaline, who ran his cabinet and manages his personal fortune, with Bongo's elder brother Andjoua-Fidele.
Interim president Rose Francine Rogombe, the Senate speaker, also attended with Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe Ndong and many other members of the cabinet.
After the ceremony, Bongo's body was laid to rest in a mausoleum built inside the palace, a source close to the family said.
According to the constitutional court, the government's functions ceased once the interim president had been sworn in, but Ndong and his cabinet remained operational to oversee the country during the funeral.
The key question since Bongo's death is who will succeed a man who maintained a controversially close relationship with France, but whose last years were overshadowed by corruption charges.
Gabonese and French leaders have praised Bongo for bringing about national unity of his country, which is an ethnic patchwork where he comes from a minority group. All have called for that unity to be treated as a part of Bongo's legacy.
The funeral orations in Libreville steered clear of the issue of the succession, but the late Bongo's close aides and the government have been acting fast to avoid a power vacuum.
Ali Ben Bongo, 50, came to the fore to speak on behalf of the family, and in recent days has been frequently appeared in Gabonese media flanking the interim president.
Sources close to the government said that Ndong could resign on Friday, but it was more likely he will do so after a cabinet meeting on Monday, where the interior ministry is due to present a timetable for a presidential election.
Constitutionally, a vote should take place within 45 days of the swearing-in of the interim head of state. There is widespread agreement however that the voters' roll needs to be updated.
"For the moment, civil servants are working to a timetable of 90 days, or even more," said a source close to the presidency. Since Bongo died, several sources have said that the current voter's roll is not credible.
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