Lot Essay
This painting belongs to the early sixteenth-century Netherlandish tradition of depicting Biblical scenes and figures, often hermit saints like Jerome, set against mountainous panoramas, as popularised by Joachim Patinir (c. 1480-1524) and Herri met de Bles (c. 1510-after 1550). Particular attention was paid to the rendering of the landscape’s stylised topography and the geometric shapes formed by the incorporated buildings.