St. Francis Embracing Christ on the Cross
This panel depicts St. Francis embracing the crucified Christ, who leans down from the cross toward him, a composition based on Bartolomé Esteban Murillo’s painting Saint Francis Embracing Christ on the Cross (1668–1669, now in the Museum of Fine Arts of Seville), originally created for the Capuchin monastery church in that city.
A very important detail in this artwork is St. Francis resting his right foot on a globe, a symbol representing the phase in his life when he renounced worldly goods. In Murillo’s original painting, two cherubs hold an open book above, believed to display an inscription from the Gospel of Luke (“whoever does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple”). Instead of this inscription, this tile panel adds four figures, two on each side, along with an angel floating above on the left, all witnessing the scene. The two women on the right are likely the Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene, and as seen in the image, one of them gestures toward a landscape.
This panel keeps the basic spirit of Murillo’s painting but includes additional figures to emphasize the importance of the event.
Explore more about Capela das Almas
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– Capela das Almas de Santa Catarina: Official Plaque Placed by Porto City Council
Life of St. Francis of Assisi
– Capela das Almas: St. Francis Receiving the Stigmata
– Capela das Almas: St. Francis Embracing Christ on the Cross
– Capela das Almas: St. Francis Before Pope Honorius III
– Capela das Almas: St. Francis Performs the Miracle of the Spring
– Capela das Almas: The Death of St. Francis of Assisi
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– Capela das Almas: The Mystical Marriage of St. Catherine
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– Capela das Almas: Debate, Victory, and Martyrdom — The Story of St. Catherine
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