The Penance of St. John Chrysostom
Medium
engraving
Classification
Department
Prints
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Leonard C. Hanna Jr.
Accession Number
1934.339
Tags
male
About this artwork
In the late Middle Ages an unusual legend was assigned to John Chrysostom, a hermit saint who lived in the wilderness. The story related that the daughter of the emperor lost her way during a storm and found shelter in the saint’s cave. In weakness, he betrayed his vow of chastity and in guilt, threw her off a cliff. To repent, John crawled like a beast in the wild for many years. When the girl was miraculously found alive with her child, John was absolved of his sins. Dürer’s focus on the mothe...