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Secondary sourcePaintingbefore 1337

Stigmatization of St Francis

Giotto · before 1337

A detail from Giotto's fresco cycle at Assisi showing Francis receiving the stigmata from a seraph.

This fresco depicts Francis receiving the stigmata, a defining event in his religious legend.

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Detail of a fresco showing a winged six-winged seraph with red wings and a halo, figure with outstretched arms, descending over a blue sky toward a kneeling figure in a brown hooded robe with a golden halo at lower left. Rays of light extend between them. A rocky landscape with small trees is at left, and a small golden tabernacle-like structure with a figure appears at lower right.
Giotto, Stigmatization of St Francis, before 1337. Basilica of San Francesco, Assisi.

About this source

What it is

This is a detail from a fresco by Giotto, part of the Legend of St Francis cycle, created before 1337. It shows a six-winged seraph descending toward a kneeling figure in a hooded robe with a halo, with rays of light connecting them.

Why it matters

The image captures one of the most famous episodes associated with Francis, his receiving of wounds resembling Christ's. As part of a major fresco cycle by one of the most important painters of the era, it shows how artists helped shape and spread the image of Francis as a holy figure for centuries after his death.

Look closer

  • What makes the seraph look powerful or otherworldly in this image?
  • Why do you think the artist included a small structure and figure in the lower corner?
  • How does this image compare to other depictions of the same event you may have seen?

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.

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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

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