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Caravaggio in the churches: six paintings, free, where he left them

Most great paintings have been moved to museums. In Rome six by Caravaggio are still on the walls of the chapels that ordered them, in the light he painted them for.

The Contarelli Chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi, with Caravaggio's three paintings of St Matthew on its walls.
Phyrexian, Public domain
What it is
Church
Time to allow
1 to 2 hours
Cost
Free
Best time
Mid-morning, or after four in the afternoon

Rome this week

    Why the Caravaggio churches is worth it

    Caravaggio came to Rome a nobody in the 1590s and left it in 1606 a fugitive, wanted for murder. In between he changed painting. He put saints in the clothes of the street, lit them like a stage out of deep shadow, and used ordinary Romans as his models. People were shocked, and then every painter in Europe copied him.

    The commission that made him was the Contarelli Chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi, the church of the French in Rome. His three paintings of St Matthew there, begun in 1599, were his first large public work. Two more followed in 1600 and 1601 for the Cerasi Chapel in Santa Maria del Popolo, and then the Madonna of the Pilgrims for Sant'Agostino.

    Seeing them here is different from seeing them in a gallery. The Calling of St Matthew hangs on the left wall of a dim side chapel, and the light in the picture falls from the same side as the light from the real window.

    What to see

    1. San Luigi dei Francesi

      The Contarelli Chapel, last on the left: the Calling of St Matthew, the Inspiration of St Matthew over the altar, and his Martyrdom on the right.

    2. Sant'Agostino

      Three minutes away. In the first chapel on the left, the Madonna of the Pilgrims: two peasants kneel at a doorway, and the soles of the man's feet are dirty. On a pillar of the nave is a prophet Isaiah by Raphael.

    3. Santa Maria del Popolo

      On Piazza del Popolo, twenty minutes' walk north. In the Cerasi Chapel, left of the altar: the Conversion of St Paul and the Crucifixion of St Peter, with an Assumption by Annibale Carracci between them.

    4. The Chigi Chapel

      In the same church, a chapel designed by Raphael and finished by Bernini. You came for one master and get three.

    How to do it well

    • Bring coins. The chapels are dark, and a machine by each one lights the paintings for a minute or two.
    • All three churches close for a few hours in the middle of the day. Go in the morning or late in the afternoon.
    • Start at San Luigi dei Francesi, by Piazza Navona, then Sant'Agostino, then walk up to Piazza del Popolo.
    • They are working churches. Do not walk round during mass.
    • For more, the Galleria Borghese has six of his paintings and the Capitoline Museums two.

    Where it is

    Address

    San Luigi dei Francesi, between Piazza Navona and the Pantheon

    Nearest station

    Flaminio, on line A, for Santa Maria del Popolo. Buses stop on Corso del Rinascimento for the other two

    Museums and sights nearby

    Distances are in a straight line.

    Tickets and tours: Caravaggio in the churches

    Caravaggio in the churches: common questions

    Where can you see Caravaggio for free in Rome?
    In three churches: San Luigi dei Francesi has three paintings of St Matthew, Sant'Agostino has the Madonna of the Pilgrims, and Santa Maria del Popolo has the Conversion of St Paul and the Crucifixion of St Peter. Entry to all three is free.
    Which church in Rome has the Calling of St Matthew?
    San Luigi dei Francesi, the French national church, between Piazza Navona and the Pantheon. The painting is in the Contarelli Chapel, the last chapel on the left.
    How many Caravaggio paintings are in Rome?
    More than twenty. Six are in the three churches on this walk. Others are in the Galleria Borghese, the Capitoline Museums, the Vatican Museums, Palazzo Barberini and the Galleria Doria Pamphilj.
    How much time do you need for the Caravaggio churches?
    Allow 1 to 2 hours. That is this site's estimate for an unhurried visit.

    What visitors say about the Caravaggio churches

    Rating from Google

    4.8

    8,651 ratings on Google

    Google's figures as read on 6 October 2026.

    Read every review on Google

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