Saint Francis appears to Pope Nicholas V

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The story of Saint Francis appearing to Pope Nicholas V is based on a Franciscan legend that became popular in the 17th century. In 1449, Pope Nicholas V and a small group visited the tomb of Saint Francis in Assisi, Italy. In the darkened crypt, the flickering torchlight fell on the saint's body, which was miraculously preserved. 

The author, Antonio Montufar, created a variety of characters mixing legends with real people. Each of them are dressed in expensive clothing. With exception to the three figures dressed in very regal black clothing, in the lower left, all of the charaters have unique expression. The trio has the same pose, with their heads tilted, with similar features creating an unquestionable familial resemblance.

The pious image of Pope Nicholas V kneeling in red papal attire contrasts with the dark and cryptic nature of the scene. Saint Francis, appearing before him, is depicted with glassy eyes, contemplating heaven, his hands are concealed, and one of his stigmata bleeding on his chest. The robe of the Saint seems to be made out of thick wool. 

With only 3 light sources visible within the painting itself, it is easy to imagine how dark the actual scene would have been in the Tomb of Saint Francis of Assisi in 1449. This is not a bright painting, but the use of a single candle is inferred to be so powerful that its radiance flows throughout the entire space, from left to right, including those who would be backlit. 

Characters within the painting are slightly out of scale, especially the Peruvian family at the bottom left corner. Their lavish attire suggests that they were members of the nobility. However, this Peruvian Family  were obviously not alive in 1428 when Pope Nicholas V visited the Tomb of Saint Francis — and such visitation itself is also sourced in legend.

Pope Nicholas V - Papacy ended 24 March 1455.

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This image is a public domain image, which means either that copyright has expired in the image or the copyright holder has waived their copyright. Franciscan Gallery charges for the access to high resolution copy of the image. Manually restoration was necessary in order to improve quality, without covering the original image.