The Image of St Francis : Responses to Sainthood in the Thirteenth Century

An important reappraisal of the image of St Francis as it was recorded in literature, documents, architecture and art. Highly illustrated throughout, including colour and black and white plates, and containing key extracts from the major sources, this book bridges the boundaries of history and the history of art.

An important new study of the way in which St Francis's image was recorded in literature, documents, architecture and art. St Francis was a man whose personality was deliberately stamped on his Order and Rosalind Brooke explores how the stories told by Francis's companions were at once brilliantly vivid portrayals of the man as well as guides to how the Franciscan way of life ought to be led. She also examines how after St Francis's death a great monument was erected to him in the Basilica at Assisi and how this came to reflect in stone and stained glass and fresco the manner in which some Popes and leading friars believed his memory should be fostered. Highly illustrated throughout, including colour and black and white plates, this book will be essential reading for medievalists and art historians as well as anyone interested in St Francis and the Franciscan movement.