Saint Francis

Saint Francis is one of the most popular saints in the Catholic Church. Here we see him embracing a crucifix during one of his retreats in the wilderness. Mindful of his mortality, he leans on a human skull still fresh enough to bear a tuft of hair. He hasn’t brought much baggage with him, just a little straw basket to hold his begging bowl and a simple meal—a carrot or similar root vegetable. Though he subjects himself to deprivation, a musical angel has come to soothe him. As was sometimes his practice, Agostino adapted another artist’s composition for his own purposes. Here he took an etching by Francesco Vanni as his point of departure. He opens up the composition to include a lovely landscape and a more mature angel.