Saints Francis of Assisi and Francis Borgia
18th century
Church of St. Francis Xavier, Cáceres, Spain
Francis Borgia is the subject of the statue on the right. His left hand holds his attribute, a crowned skull that refers to a conversion experience in 1539: As Duke of Gandia he was commissioned to accompany the corpse of Isabella of Portugal, wife of Phillip II, to its final resting place. Contemplating the putrefaction in the dead queen's body, and the stink, he came to disdain the things of the flesh, renounce his titles, and enlist in the newly formed Society of Jesus (Acta Sanctorum, October vol. 5, 246 et seqq.). His feast day is October 10.
Read more about St. Francis of Assisi
Photographed at the church by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.