Saint Jerome in the Wilderness
ca. 1470
Medium
Marble
Dimensions
Overall (confirmed): 16 5/8 × 15 1/4 × 2 7/8 in., 31 lb. (42.2 × 38.7 × 7.3 cm, 14.0615kg)
Classification
Sculpture
Culture
Italian, Florence
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Rogers Fund and Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 2001
Accession Number
2001.593
Tags
Art Historical Context
Antonio Rossellino’s *Saint Jerome in the Wilderness*, carved around 1470 in marble, captures the Florentine Renaissance fascination with both classical form and vivid religious storytelling. As a leading sculptor of fifteenth-century Florence, Rossellino brought a refined sensitivity to marble, using its luminous surface to suggest both rugged terrain and spiritual intensity. The shallow yet dynamic relief, measuring just under seventeen inches high, was likely intended for private devotion, inviting close contemplation of the hermit saint’s life. The composition draws on familiar symbols of...
About the Artist
Antonio Rossellino · 1427–1479
Comment on works: sculptor