Saint Clare Rescuing a Child Mauled by a Wolf

Saint Clare Rescuing a Child Mauled by a Wolf from around 1443 depicts a miracle from the life of Clare of Assisi, the founder of the Poor Clares order. The dramatic rescue narrative allowed Giovanni di Paolo to combine his skills in landscape, animal painting, and hagiographic storytelling Altarpieces featuring rows of standing saints served both liturgical and devotional functions, identifying the church's patron saints and giving worshippers specific objects for personal prayer.

The dramatic scene contrasts the violence of the wolf attack with the saint's calm intervention, rendered in Giovanni di Paolo's characteristic bright palette and expressive figural style.