Saint Jerome in the Wilderness
Picture
1566 (made)
1566 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Francesco Zuccato created this mosaic of St Jerome for a contest organised by the authorities of St Mark's in Venice in 1566. The competition was to establish who was best among the master mosaicists. Francesco and his brother won first and second prizes.
Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.
Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.
Object details
Object type | |
Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
|
Title | Saint Jerome in the Wilderness (generic title) |
Materials and techniques | Glass micromosaic with gilded wood frame. |
Brief description | Mosaic picture depicting St Jerome in the wilderness, Francesco Zuccato, Venice, 1566 |
Physical description | Rectangular micromosaic depicting Saint Jerome as an old, white haired, bearded man with a halo dressed in blue and purple robes, kneeling in right profile in a landscape setting. In his right hand he holds a rock and with his left arm he cradles a wooden crucifix. In the foreground is a red hat and by Jerome's right knee is a lion. |
Dimensions |
|
Gallery label |
|
Credit line | The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London |
Object history | Provenance: Phillibert Emmanuel, Duke of Savoy, sale, Christie's, London, lot 54, 05/07/1994. Historical significance: Some of the history of this mosaic is described in a historical novel by the French writer George Sand (1804-1876) entitled 'The Master Mosaicists'. However, she records that Valerio Zuccato, Francesco's brother, won the first prize, although documentary evidence has shown that she was wrong. |
Historical context | St Jerome is portrayed in one of his traditional poses as the Penitent. He is shown grey haired and beareded, dishevelled and semi-naked, kneeling with a rock held in his hand for beating his breast, before a crucifix in the desert with a skull nearby. He is accompanied by his customary attributes, a cardinal's hat and a lion. Jerome was an intelligent and volatile youth who travelled on a spiritually inspiring pilgrimage to the Holy Land. He later spent four years among scorpions and wild beasts styding Hebrew in the Syrian desert. |
Summary | Francesco Zuccato created this mosaic of St Jerome for a contest organised by the authorities of St Mark's in Venice in 1566. The competition was to establish who was best among the master mosaicists. Francesco and his brother won first and second prizes. Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996. |
Bibliographic references |
|
Other numbers |
|
Collection | |
Accession number | LOAN:GILBERT.962:1, 2-2008 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
Record created | June 26, 2008 |
Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest