The Flagellation (c. 1460), 81.1×59 cm, tempera on panel, National Gallery of Urbino. Born near Arezzo, Francesca trained in Florence and later collaborated with Domenico Veneziano to decorate the Sant'Egidio church. In 1451, he benefited from Sigismond Pandolfo Malatesta, decorating the San Francesco Church with portraits of his patron, earning it the name "Malatesta Temple." He was then invited back to his hometown of Arezzo to decorate the San Francesco Church with the series "The Story of the True Cross," cementing his reputation as one of the era's most outstanding painters. In 1470, invited by Duke Frederic de Montefeltre of Urbino, he became the court painter for the Urbino court. There, he met fellow artists and created important works, such as the Urbino Court frescoes and the distinguished portraits of the duke and duchess. Deeply influenced by Uccello’s rigorous perspective and inspired by his mathematician friend Lucio Pacioli to construct perspective mathematically, Francesca evolved under the delicate and refined painting techniques of the region to become the master of early Renaissance spatial representation.

"The Flagellation" is a politically charged image depicting the suffering Jesus Christ, symbolizing the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the collapse of the Byzantine Empire, and the oppression of Christian peoples under the autocratic rule of the Ottoman Empire. It is also a classic example of perfect architectural or mathematical perspective, presenting a unique space through point-perspective architectural structures and the distribution of figure sizes. Under solid naturalistic realism, it features perfect forms and volumes, unified lighting, soft tones, and rigorous structure, particularly emphasizing the detailed depiction of figures in the foreground. The complete scene is divided into two narrative segments set against a unified architectural landscape, suggesting two different locations. In the foreground outdoors, three figures of different ages and attire gather around a young man in red at the center, engaged in a solemn political dialogue debating whether the West should launch a crusade eastward. In the background indoors, Jesus Christ, half-naked with hands bound behind him, is being whipped by two soldiers holding whips. Standing before them is a figure wearing an Arab hat with his back to us, and seated to his left is another wearing a pointed high hat (perhaps an Ottoman emperor?), both personally participating in this punishment. One can imagine these three figures outside deeply concerned about this matter; within this inventive narrative, the painting dramatically presents a political allegory, a rare example in Renaissance painting.