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“The grace of God, our savior, in these last days appeared in his servant Francis to all who are truly humble and truly friends of holy poverty.” Bonaventure’s Life of St. Francis
Art historian Timothy Verdon tells the story of the life of St. Francis of Assisi in story and art. The 28 stunning thirteenth-century frescoes by Giotto that cover the walls of the famous Basilica in Assisi named for the saint are reproduced in full color, together with a schematic drawing showing their placement in the church. Through detailed descriptions and illuminating commentary on each of the famous frescoes, Verdon tells the story of Francis’s extraordinary life, allowing today’s reader the opportunity to “read” the art on those walls in the same way that a medieval Christian might have done.
Our focus at Image is on contemporary art, but we’re also traditionalists. So I love that Paraclete Press is in cahoots with the great art historian, Monsignor Timothy Verdon, on books, tours, and beyond. His latest is The Story of St. Francis of Assisi, a lucid explication of the fresco cycle in the basilica there (Giotto et al.).
—Gregory Wolfe, Image Journal
Monsignor Timothy Verdon, one of the world’s most respected art historians, is the Academic Director of the Mount Tabor Centre in Barga, Italy. He earned his PhD at Yale University and for most of the last 50 years has lived in Florence, Italy, where he directs the Diocesan Office of Sacred Art and Church Cultural Heritage, the Cathedral Foundation Museum (Museo dell’Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore), and the Centre for Ecumenism of the Archdiocese of Florence.
