Caravaggio in Rome: Masterpieces and Turmoil in the City That Shaped Him

Make Caravaggio the Focus of Your Next Trip to Rome

Why experience Rome as simply a succession of famous churches, palaces, and piazzas when one painter can reveal how closely art, fame, and violence were intertwined in the Eternal City?

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio revolutionized painting with radical realism, dramatic light, and an immediacy that still makes his paintings unmistakable today. His rise to fame was marked by repeated clashes with the law and violent confrontations. In 1606, the death of Ranuccio Tomassoni forced him to flee Rome.

Follow in Caravaggio’s footsteps from San Luigi dei Francesi, Santa Maria del Popolo, and Sant’Agostino to the palaces of his patrons, the streets of the Campo Marzio, and the sites of his conflicts.

An Art Monograph and Travel Guide in One Volume

Caravaggio’s Rise, Conflict, and Excess: Follow his path from a largely unknown newcomer to the celebrated painter behind Rome’s great church commissions, and explore his relationships with cardinals and collectors, his conflicts with rivals and enemies, and the events that led to his flight from Rome in 1606.

Caravaggio’s Major Works Clearly Explained: Understand how composition, light, gesture, the use of models, and pictorial space create the religious drama of his paintings, and discover why they captivated his contemporaries and profoundly shaped European painting for generations.

Your Caravaggio Guide to Rome

Experience Caravaggio’s Works in situ: This book combines the depth of a serious art monograph with the practicality of an on-site guide. Discover his paintings in their original settings and historical context, and see more clearly how setting, patronage, and their place within the city shaped their impact.

Walk Through Caravaggio’s Rome: Follow three carefully designed routes through the city, from his major works in Rome’s churches to the streets of his daily life and the sites of his conflicts.

Walk slowly. Look more closely. Discover Caravaggio’s masterpieces and excesses in the Eternal City.