Caravaggio, The Calling of St. Matthew

1599-1600
Oil on canvas, 127 x 135 in. (322 x 340 cm.)
Contarelli Chapel, Church of San Luigi Francesi

Like the "Martyrdom of St. Matthew" on the opposite wall of the chapel, this painting gives us the long pause of refusal that often precedes submission to the will of God. Young Matthew is richly dressed and has a pile of money in hand. Christ and St. Peter have simple garments and bare feet. The young man thinks long and hard.

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Photographed at the church by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.