Roman School, Circa 1700- Saint Francis of Assisi at prayer in a mountainous landscape; oil on canvas, 48 x 36 cm. Provenance: The Property of the Downside Abbey General Trust sale, Sotheby's, London, 23 September 2020, lot 103. Note: The present work depicts Saint Francis of Assisi (c.1182-1226) at prayer before a wooden crucifix in an extensive summer landscape. Founder of the Franciscan order and one of the most venerated figures of the Catholic church, Saint Francis is presented kneeling with his arms crossed, amon iconographical tradition in images of the Saint referring to his ecstatic sharing of Christ's Passion. His hands are shown as though pierced by the marks of the stigmatisation, which took place on Mount La Verna (near Arezzo) two years before his death. Beside the saint is a devotional book with a Latin prayer, while behind opens a distant landscape view. The painting has been carefully conceived so as to prompt a sequence of meditations on Saint Francis during his retreat on Mount La Verna. Such a picture would have been ideally suited for a Capuchin or Conventual Franciscan friar or establishment.Held in a carved and giltwood frame. Please refer to department for condition report