Northern Italian School; 17th century. "San Jerónimo Penitente". Oil on canvas. Relined

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Old Masters

By Setdart Auction House

Jun 30, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-06-30 08:30:00 2021-06-30 08:30:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Old Masters https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/setdart-auction-house/old-masters-7134
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• Lot Description
  Northern Italian School; 17th century. "San Jerónimo Penitente". Oil on canvas. Relined Presents repaints and old restorations. Measures: 105 x 76.5 cm. In this work we can observe one of the four great Doctors of the Latin Church, St. Jerome, who was born near Aquileia (Italy) in 347. He was born near Aquileia (Italy) in the year 347. Trained in Rome, he was an accomplished rhetorician, as well as a polyglot. Baptized at the age of nineteen, between 375 and 378 he retired to the Syrian desert to lead an anchorite's life. He returned to Rome in 382 and became a collaborator of Pope Damasus. One of the most frequent representations of this saint is his penance in the desert. His attributes are the stone he uses to beat his chest and the skull on which he meditates. Also the cardinal's cape (or a red mantle), although he was never a cardinal, and the tamed lion. The latter comes from a story of the "Golden Legend", where it is narrated that one day, when he was explaining the Bible to the monks of his convent, he saw a lion coming with a limp. He removed the thorn from its paw, and from then on he kept it in his service, instructing it to look after his donkey while it grazed. Some merchants stole the donkey, and the lion recovered it, returning it to the saint without hurting the animal. The representation of St. Jerome was quite frequent among Counter-Reformation artists. Because he propagated the cult of the Virgin Mary, something that the Protestants disdained and that was a sign of Catholicism. In this case Saint Jerome is portrayed during his penance, when he retired as a hermit. The image features the saint standing in the center of the composition with his arms open in a prayerful attitude. Inscribed in a landscape, the figure is accompanied by various iconographic attributes located on the rocks that populate the foreground of the scene. Examples are the book, alluding to the translation of the Bible that the saint made, the skull, the cross, a crown and a staff. The painting in question is reminiscent of the models that were developed in different cities located in northern Italy. Both the classicism of the forms and the posture of the protagonist define these similarities. In addition, the author has opted for a contrasting palette between the dark backgrounds and the delimited contours of the figure, while in the flesh tones and drapery (in the yellow tunic that envelops the body) he uses bright colors and extracts beautiful velvety qualities.
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