In 1565 the French Monsignor Matteo Contarelli acquired a chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome, but when he died twenty years later it had not yet been decorated. The executor of his will, Virgilio Crescenzi, and later his son, Giacomo, undertook the task. The decorative scheme called for a statue of St Matthew and the Angel, commissioned first to Gerolamo Muziano, and then to the Flemish sculptor Cobaert, for the high altar; and for a fresco cycle for the walls and ceiling by Cavalier d'Arpino. The latter decorated the vault in 1591-93, but the walls were left bare. On 13 June 1599 a contract was stipulated before a notary by which Caravaggio undertook to execute two paintings for the lateral walls (The Calling of Saint Matthew and The Martyrdom of St Matthew), for which he was paid the following year (1600), after the paintings had been set in place. Later, on 7 February 1602, after Cobaert's statue had been judged unsatisfactory, an altarpiece was entrusted to Caravaggio in a separate contract that called for delivery of the work by 32 May, the Feast of the Pentecost. This painting was rejected, the artist made another one (which was accepted) in a surprisingly brief time, receiving payment for this second work on 22 September.

Suggested listening (streaming mp3, 8 minutes): Johann Sebastian Bach: St. Matthew Passion BWV 244 (excerpts)

Preview	Picture Data	File Info	Comment
	The Calling of Saint Matthew 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, 322 x 340 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	1060*1001 True Color 113 Kb
	The Calling of Saint Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, width of detail: 86 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	908*1102 True Color 133 Kb
	The Calling of Saint Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, width of detail: 92 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	907*1101 True Color 135 Kb
	The Calling of Saint Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	648*934 True Color 134 Kb
	The Calling of Saint Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	647*946 True Color 119 Kb
	The Calling of Saint Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, width of detail: 30 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	731*900 True Color 96 Kb
	The Calling of Saint Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	970*668 True Color 88 Kb
	The Calling of Saint Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	566*975 True Color 124 Kb
	The Martyrdom of St Matthew 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, 323 x 343 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	1010*961 True Color 144 Kb
	The Martyrdom of St Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, width of detail: 90 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	827*1000 True Color 97 Kb
	The Martyrdom of St Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, width of detail: 49 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	701*860 True Color 66 Kb
	The Martyrdom of St Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, width of detail: 49 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	858*1050 True Color 115 Kb
	The Martyrdom of St Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, width of detail: 90 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	809*1000 True Color 124 Kb
	The Martyrdom of St Matthew (detail) 1599-1600 Oil on canvas, width of detail: 90 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	770*850 True Color 104 Kb
	St Matthew and the Angel 1602 Oil on canvas, 232 x 183 cm Formerly Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum, Berlin	634*800 Grayscale 77 Kb
	The Inspiration of Saint Matthew 1602 Oil on canvas, 292 x 186 cm Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome	703*1100 True Color 109 Kb