St Jerome in his Study

1514

From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum

Northern Renaissance Renaissance Renaissance Allegory

Dominant colour

St Jerome in his Study is a 1514 by Albrecht Dürer, a Northern Renaissance work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.

Who painted this?: Albrecht Dürer
When & what style?: 1514 · Northern Renaissance
Where can I see it?: Victoria and Albert Museum

About this work

Albrecht Dürer’s 1514 engraving shows Saint Jerome bent over his desk. Sunlight slices through a window, lighting a skull and inkpot. The room feels real, right down to the wood grain. Dürer used math to make the space look deep. Every object sits where it should. The lion sleeping near the saint adds quiet life. Look up chiaroscuro if this lighting trick grabs you.

The story of this work

Overview

Albrecht Dürer’s 1514 engraving depicts Saint Jerome seated in a sunlit study, surrounded by scholarly and devotional objects such as books, writing tools, and a skull, while a lion sleeps in the foreground. The composition employs precise mathematical perspective to convey intellectual and spiritual focus, with additional details like an hourglass, a gourd hanging from the ceiling, and a dog nearby. The scene reflects the saint’s role as a theologian and translator of the Bible, emphasizing his scholarly discipline. This work is one of three engravings often grouped as Dürer’s most…

Read the full account in the museum source.