Saint Francis Kneeling in Meditation

c. 1595–c. 1600

Saint Francis appears here surrounded by symbols associated with his sainthood. The book, for example, speaks to his devotional studies, and the skull is a reminder of the inevitability of death. The painting prompts the viewer to meditate upon the saint in the same way that he prays before the sculpture of the crucified Jesus.

Public domain · CC0
Free to download and reuse. Image courtesy of Art Institute of Chicago.

Artist

El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos; Greek, active in Spain, 1541–1614)

Date

c. 1595–c. 1600

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

92 × 74 cm (36 3/16 × 24 1/8 in.); Framed: 112.4 × 94.6 × 8.9 cm (44 1/4 × 37 1/4 × 3 1/2 in.)

Origin

Greece

Collection

Art Institute of Chicago

Credit

Robert A. Waller Memorial Fund