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Plaque with the Penitent Saint Jerome
(Renaissance Europe )
St. Jerome (ca. 341-420), one of the Fathers of the Church, did penance in the Syrian desert for having focused on classical studies instead of on Christ. He then returned to civilization to combine these passions in his great translation of the Bible from Hebrew and Greek into Latin. This image was deeply inspirational to Christians devoted to the study of the classics.
This plaque was to be hung in a private space. Perhaps in the 1600s, the original frame was replaced with the present one, decorated with enameling to imitate turquoise and lapis lazuli. The effect suggests the influence of Turkish metalwork.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Don Marcello Massarenti Collection, Rome [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1902, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
France, Limoges (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 3 1/16 x W: 2 7/16 in. (7.7 x 6.2 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters with the Massarenti Collection, 1902
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
44.215