Among the masterpieces painted by Caravaggio in the Contarelli Chapel of the Church of San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome, there is his Martyrdom of Saint Matthew. Trust me, if you come in Rome you cannot skip this  place, especially if you have a local tour guide with you! 

Try to remember how Caravaggio, for the first time in his early career, engaged here in a public commission in which his works would be exposed in a place open to all, as a church, had to face some challenges that never before that time was found to deal with: the fact of making a work inside a chapel, with the point of view of the observers that could not necessarily be accurate, and perfectly central (still today, the work is exposed on one of the side walls of the chapel), and maybe even the thrill of painting something that, for the first time, could be seen by all the people of Rome. In his Martyrdom of St. Matthew we see how Caravaggio sets the scene for what we are told in the Sacred Scriptures. The saint, lying in the first floor above the stairs that double as almost the perfect stage to highlight our eyes, is going to be killed by the young man at the foreground. On heroic nudity and covered only by the towel, closely resembles, in the body, that of Adam by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel. It is a demonstration of how Caravaggio took inspiration from the great masters of the past. We understand that we're witnessing the martyrdom of the saint, also thanks to the palm trees brought by the angel, on a cloud, and almost seems to reach St Matthew.

The scene, immersed in the typical darkness by Caravaggio, is incredibly torn by this strong and bright light, which we don't see the origin. A divine light that illuminates not so much the saint, as you might expect, as the young man who, dagger in hand, ready to commit murder. After all, the Grace of God, symbolized by this dazzling light, it should tap, especially those who, like the young, they need it most. There is as well a fact is a curiosity and a thousand questions that are still posed in regards to the work (as happens in many other creations of Caravaggio). Is there a doubt that prompts us to ask a question: but really, the man at the foreground, with the weapon in his hand, is the killer? And if not, who is the murderer?

The various questions are immediately raised when you observe the best the strong emotions of the characters entered in the pictorial work. The scene is in fact permeated by the drama and the pathos data from the characters that attend the act of violence, as demonstrated by the frightened face of the young man on the right, which is caught in a sudden rush of terror that the door to flee away. Even the man on the left, with open arms, it is strongly frightened. But let's look at the face of the young man at the foreground, the one that touches the left arm of Saint Matthew, and let's flip the scene: imagine that St. Matthew was just stabbed, and that a young person with a weapon in hand is rushing to the altar further to defend the holy one, trying maybe to find the real perpetrators of the crime. And imagine that the young man is trying, in one way or another, to help Saint Matthew, lifting it from the ground. After all, try to notice the face of the boy: it seems afraid, in confusion, in total alarm. Only two figures within the painting almost seem to offer an escape from the tragic episode: one is the young man in the bottom left, with a beard and a black goatee, behind the man of whom we see only the nape of the neck. Here you can see the self-portrait of Caravaggio that he wanted to include in this narrative a philosophical. Stuff by artists and by the masters, common to see. But there is also another young man, the one on the left with yellow feathers and a white one, having a weapon in his hand. Here, he seems to look you straight in the direction of San Matteo, it seems that is out of the picture, as if he wanted to leave in a hurry. But, above all, by the face does not show through surprise or panic. In fact, it almost seems quiet and relaxed, as if he had completed his task. And if...