St Jerome in the Desert
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
Sheet: 12 5/8 × 10 9/16 in. (32.1 × 26.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1959
Accession Number
59.570.158
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the hushed solitude of the desert, *St. Jerome in the Desert* captures the early Christian saint in a moment of profound contemplation and penance. Created in 1565 as an by Dutch master printmaker Cornelis Cort after composition by the Venetian Renaissance giant Titian (Tiziano Vecellio), this draws from Titian's vibrant late style, known for its dramatic lighting and emotional depth. Saint Jerome, often shown as a scholarly hermit with his loyal lion, skull, and crucifix amid sparse trees and arid landscapes, symbolizes spiritual withdrawal and redemption—a popular theme in Counter-Reforma...
About the Artist
Cornelis Cort|Titian (Tiziano Vecellio) · 1533–1578
Comment on works: copper engraver; engraver; etcher