Saint Francis of Assisi in Ecstasy

Painted around 1595, this tender scene captures a quiet moment of spiritual rapture. Saint Francis of Assisi has collapsed into the arms of an angel, his eyes closed and his body relaxed in a kind of holy swoon. The story refers to the moment when Francis is said to have received the stigmata, the wounds of Christ appearing on his own body. Rather than showing pain or drama, Caravaggio chose stillness, focusing on the gentle support of the angel and the calm face of the saint.

This is believed to be one of Caravaggio's earliest religious works, and you can already see the style that would make him famous. He loved strong contrasts between light and shadow, a technique known as chiaroscuro, which here pulls the two figures out of the surrounding darkness like a spotlight. Notice how the night setting fades into near total blackness, with only a faint glimmer of light on the distant horizon. The everyday realism is striking too, since the angel looks less like a heavenly being and more like a real young man, a touch that was typical of Caravaggio's down to earth approach to sacred subjects.