Michelangelo Merisi known as Caravaggio is one of the most revolutionary and celebrated artists of all time. His explosive manner exceeded the academic precepts that idealised nature, describing the world in its varied complexity and therefore also in its most humble and raw aspects. This volume traces the short, and unfortunately tragic existential parable of the great Lombard painter, an exceptional path strongly reflected in his work, still actual even after 410 years after his passing. The characters of his paintings, ordinary men and women capable of narrating the themes of myth and faith, are true universal icons still of great emotional impact today.