Según Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) - Saint Jerome in His Study

European School, late 18th century
According to Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528)
Saint Jerome in His Study

Authorship: European School, probably Spanish/Catalan sphere
Model: after Albrecht Dürer
Title: Saint Jerome in His Study
Technique: oil on canvas
Chronology: late 18th century
Canvas dimensions: 82 × 65 cm
Overall dimensions with frame: 100 × 82 cm
Approximate weight of the set: 15 kg
Signature: not visible
Reverse: old inventory number “Nº 199” and initials “C.O.”
Provenance: Catalan private collection

Description

Important and interesting oil on canvas from the late 18th century, from a Catalan private collection, depicting Saint Jerome in his study following one of Albrecht Dürer’s most celebrated compositions: the extraordinary engraving Saint Jerome in His Study, created in 1514.

Iconographic identification is especially rich.

Saint Jerome is portrayed as a learned man and Doctor of the Church, absorbed in reading and writing at his work desk. Around him unfolds an interior carefully articulated through numerous symbolic elements: books and papers, the crucifix, the skull, the large red cardinal’s hat, and in the foreground, the inseparable lion, one of the saint’s traditional attributes.

The painting translates Dürer’s complex intellectual and spiritual universe into color, transforming the precise linearity of the Renaissance engraving into an image of warm, silent, and deeply contemplative atmosphere.

A composition born from Dürer

The ultimate reference of the work is the famous 1514 engraving, one of the central images of Northern Renaissance.

The overall structure of the composition remains clearly recognizable: the large side window, the skull on the bench, the books and cushions, the central desk, the crucifix, the saint bent over his work, the red hat suspended in the background, the domestic furniture, and the monumental presence of the lion in the foreground.

However, the painter does not merely transfer the model mechanically.

The incorporation of color deeply modifies its reading. The intense reds of the floor, the robes, and the cardinal’s hat contrast with the dark greens of the room, the earthy tones of the furnishings, and the deep blacks of shadowed areas.

The result is a version of strong personality, in which the stringent durerian construction acquires a more intimate and pictorial dimension.

Light, silence and knowledge

One of the most suggestive aspects of the work is its treatment of light.

The illumination enters from the side through the windows and constructs the interior with large zones of clarity and shade. The architecture is progressively defined by contrast, while Saint Jerome remains focused on his work, isolated from the outside world.

The scene thus possesses a remarkable sense of silence.

The presence of the skull introduces the traditional memento mori: even knowledge and intellectual activity are subject to the passage of time and mortality.

In front of it, the crucifix introduces the spiritual and salvific dimension.

The work can be read, therefore, not only as a representation of a saint but as a reflection on knowledge, time, death, and faith.

Saint Jerome and His Attributes

The iconography of Saint Jerome is especially recognizable by several elements present in the composition.

The red hat refers to his traditional regard as a cardinal; the books, papers and writing implements evoke his extraordinary intellectual activity and his translation of the Holy Scriptures; the skull symbolizes life’s transience; and the lion, placed prominently in the foreground, refers to the well-known legend in which the saint cures a wound in the animal’s paw, after which it remains by his side.

Choosing the saint as a learned man, rather than depicting him penitent in the desert, directly connects with the Renaissance humanist tradition and with the image that Dürer made into one of the great archetypes in the history of European engraving.

Historical context

The enormous spread of Dürer’s prints allowed his compositions to be used for centuries as a source by painters of different European schools.

In Spain as well, and in the Mediterranean sphere, there is broad documentation of employing antique engravings as compositional models during the 17th and 18th centuries.

This work should be understood within this tradition: a late pictorial reinterpretation of a Renaissance model of enormous prestige, adapted to the sensibilities and language of late 18th-century European painting.

Its Catalan provenance and certain characteristics of the work justify considering a Spanish or Catalan context reasonable, although there is currently not enough documentation to assign it to a specific workshop.

Reverse and provenance

The reverse preserves two elements especially interesting for future research.

On the upper crossbar appears an old numbering:

“Nº 199”

and on the canvas itself you can see the initials:

“C.O.”

The collection or inventory to which these marks belong has not yet been identified.

However, their preservation offers an interesting avenue of inquiry into the historical provenance of the work, particularly given its origin in a Catalan collection.

Condition

The work presents a general state coherent with its age.

The surface shows craquelure, small irregularities, wear and natural aging of varnishes and the paint layer, which do not diminish the overall reading of the composition.

Some areas show superficial darkening typical of a painting of this chronology. A potential professional conservation intervention could help recover nuances currently partially veiled by aging.

It is recommended to carefully study all detail photographs, which are an integral part of the description.

Canvas measurements: 82 × 65 cm
Overall dimensions with frame: 100 × 82 cm
Approximate weight: 15 kg

The painting is set in a substantial gilded frame, with strong decorative presence.

The frame is included as a gift, and due to its age and weight, will not be subject to complaint.

Barcelona Art Gallery ships via a professional specialized company, using custom-made boxes and foam protections. Shipments are made worldwide.

Due to the considerable volume and weight of the set, any potential extra logistics costs associated with large format or certain continental or non-EU destinations will be borne by the buyer.