JOOS VAN CLEVE (1485-1540) (follower)
Saint Hieronymus in his study, after 1521.
Panel. Visible retouchings.
In 1521, while the German artist Albrecht Dürer visited Antwerp, he painted a picture of Saint Jerome in his study surrounded by objects symbolising transience and death, now housed at the het
Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga (inv.nr. 828)
in Lisbon. The painting was a sensation, prefiguring the genre of memento mori, images that compelled contemplation of mortality. The type became a specialty of local workshops, including that of Joos van Cleve (1485/90-1540/41), who is associated with more than a dozen versions of this image. One 1521 dated version is considered to be one of his autograph version and is held at the
Harvard Art Museum (inv. 1961.26).
A version in a private collection in Turin
with a similar clock on the wall behind the saint, bookstand to the left and the skull and the candle to the right- is linked to Pieter Coecke van Aalst I (1502-1550).
Dimensions: 69 x 53 cm (88 x 71.5 cm)