Saint Jerome in the Wilderness (Mantegna)

Saint Jerome in the Wilderness (also Saint Jerome Penitent in the Desert) is a painting in tempera on panel, measuring 51 by 40 cm^[1] and attributed to Andrea Mantegna.^[2][3][4] It dates to between 1448 and 1451 and is now in the São Paulo Museum of Art.^[5]

Saint Jerome in the Wilderness
Saint Jerome Penitent in the Desert
Year	c. 1448–1451
Medium	tempera on panel
Dimensions	51 cm × 40 cm (20 in × 16 in)
Location	São Paulo Museum of Art, São Paulo
Accession	MASP.00015

History

It is usually thought of as an early work by the artist, executed shortly after he left the studio of Francesco Squarcione in 1448, enabling him to shift from religious works for third parties to private commissions in a variety of genres, such as this one, thought to have been commissioned by the humanist and poet Ulisse degli Aleotti. It probably also relates to his first trip to Ferrara in 1449 to work at the court of Leonello d'Este. The Kupferstichkabinett in Berlin holds a drawing of Saint Jerome with a lion, dating to around the same time, with a depiction of the saint that has many similarities to that of the painting, but in a different pose – it may be a preparatory drawing for this composition or a study for another now-lost work.

The painting merges Jerome the scholar and Jerome the ascetic, the two predominant modes for depicting the saint. The abandoned sandal in the foreground has probably been borrowed from Flemish works, which Mantegna could have seen in the Este collections. Two hammers are resting on a beam hanging in the cave, possibly referring to Christ's Passion, whilst perched above the cave entrance is a barn owl, traditionally linked to magic and superstition, which Jerome and Ulisse fight with the light of reason.

References

1. The measurement is given by the São Paulo museum (additionally with a depth of 4 cm) and the 2019 exhibition catalogue Mantegna & Bellini. A slightly smaller measurement of 48 by 36 cm is stated for example in the 1992 Mantegna exhibition catalogue. It most probably means just the visible part of the panel, while 2–3 cm are hidden behind the rabbet of the frame.
2. Keith Christiansen (1992). "The Catalogue". In Jane Martineau (ed.). Andrea Mantegna. London and New York: Royal Academy of Arts and The Metropolitan Museum of Art with Electa. pp. 115–117. ISBN 0-900946-40-7.
3. Sarah Vowles (2019). "Der hl. Hieronymus". In Caroline Campbell; Dagmar Korbacher; Neville Rowley; Sarah Vowles (eds.). Mantegna & Bellini. Meister der Renaissance (in German). London and Berlin: The National Gallery and Staatliche Museen zu Berlin with Hirmer. pp. 126–129. ISBN 978-3-7774-3173-4. (English edition available.)
4. The attribution is denied by Michael Hirst (1992). "Mantegna. London and New York". The Burlington Magazine. 134 (1070, May 1992): 318–321. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
5. "Andrea Mantegna Saint Jerome Penitent in the Desert, 1448–51". Museu de Arte de São Paulo (MASP). Retrieved 20 May 2024.Catalogue page

External links

• Media related to Saint Jerome by Andrea Mantegna (São Paulo) at Wikimedia Commons