St. Jerome in the Desert (Bellini, Florence)
| San Girolamo Contini Bonacossi | |
|---|---|
Uffizi Gallery, Florence |
St. Jerome in the Desert or St. Jerome Reading in the Desert is a 1480 oil-on-panel painting by the Italian Renaissance master
Uffizi Gallery in Florence as part of the Contini Bonacossi collection, giving it its alternative title of The Contini Bonacossi St. Jerome.[1]
Its original location is unknown, though Gamba's theory is that it was an altarpiece for
Vulgate Bible.[citation needed
]
The Florence work shows a crucifix on a tall stick, which he used as a prayer aid. His usual lion is shown, as are some birds, a lizard, a squirrel on a branch and one deer chasing another, all of which probably had symbolic meanings. At the top is a rural background with a fortress and a walled city full of guard towers and bell towers, along with other buildings based on famous buildings in
Mausoleum of Theoderic in Ravenna.[2] The marked the start of a new conception of landscape painting, connected to the predella of the Pesaro Altarpiece or the New York St. Francis in Ecstasy, whose figures and background are lighter and whose atmosphere is freer than previous works.[citation needed
]
References
- ^ "Catalogue entry".
- ^ Zavatta, Giulio (2006). "Il ponte di Tiberio dipinto e "interpretato" dal Bellini" [The Ponte di Tiberio painted and "interpreted" by Bellini] (PDF). Ariminum. March–April 2006 (in Italian). Rimini Rotary Club: 14–15. Retrieved 16 February 2024.