Skip to main content

Secondary sourcePainting1250

St. Francis and Six Stories from His Life

Giunta Pisano · 1250

A gold-ground panel painting by Giunta Pisano showing Francis surrounded by small scenes from his life, made soon after his canonization.

This early panel painting shows Francis with scenes from his life, made soon after his death to spread his cult.

Ask Saint Francis about this sourceView the original(opens in new tab)
Gold-ground panel painting of a standing, barefoot friar in a dark brown habit with a white rope belt, holding a book and raising a hand. Small scenes from his life surround him in side panels, and an angel appears at upper right.
Giunta Pisano, St. Francis and six stories from his life, 1250. National Museum of San Matteo.

About this source

What it is

This panel painting by the Pisan artist Giunta Pisano, made in 1250, shows Francis standing barefoot in a dark brown habit, holding a book and raising a hand in blessing. Small scenes from his life surround him, including an angel in the upper corner. It is held at the National Museum of San Matteo.

Why it matters

This painting is an early example of a 'vita' icon, a type of image that combined a saint's portrait with scenes from their life to spread devotion. Painted soon after Francis's death, it reflects how the new Franciscan Order used art to build his cult and teach the faithful about his example.

Look closer

  • Why might an artist surround a central figure with smaller scenes instead of just one picture?
  • What does Francis's bare feet and plain habit suggest about the values the painting wants to show?
  • Who might have commissioned this kind of image, and why?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Saint Francis on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Saint Francis sources

Meet the AI Saint Francis →
Manuscript page in Latin with black gothic script and red initial letter M and red-highlighted lines, with handwritten marginal notes on the right. The text includes 'Altissimu onnipotente bon signore' and 'Laudes creaturarum', consistent with the Canticle of the Sun.Book

Primary source

Canticle of the Sun

Francis of Assisi · 1226

Photograph of a small, aged parchment sheet sealed in a metal-framed case. It has faded brown ink text in Latin with red headings, a large hand-drawn red and brown Tau cross with a figure-like sketch, and a few lines of writing at the bottom.Document

Primary source

Chartula fratri Leonis

Francis of Assisi · 1224

Book

Secondary source

First Life of Saint Francis

Thomas of Celano · 1230

Gold-background panel painting in a gabled wooden frame. A standing robed friar with a halo holds a book and raises one hand, flanked by two angels above. Smaller framed scenes in the side panels show his life events in colorful architecture.Painting

Secondary source

Saint Francis of Assisi and Scenes of His Life

Bonaventura Berlinghieri · 1235

Aerial view of the Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi on a hilltop, with its pink-toned stone walls, a tall bell tower, and a large sloping retaining wall. A parking area and winding road are below, with green valley and hills in the distance under a cloudy sky.Artifact

Secondary source

Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi

begun 1228

Ready when you are

Start chatting with Saint Francis now.

20 messages free · No credit card · Available in 50+ languages.

Trial Humy for freeGet a quote for institutions