Saint Francis in Meditation
2018 © Maxim Tabachnik
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Saint Francis in MeditationCaravaggio

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St Francis is contemplating a skull beside a wooden cross. While often grouped with Caravaggio’s Roman works, it was painted in 1606, just after his flight, at the cusp of exile. Stripped of detail, the friar’s solitude embodies mortality and grace, marking a shift toward the darker intensity of his later years.