St. Jerome at Prayer

"St. Jerome at Prayer" is a captivating painting by Hieronymus Bosch, depicting St. Jerome in deep prayer. Completed around 1482, this piece is now housed at the Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent. The museum acquired the painting in 1908. Although the precise date of its creation was initially debated, dendrochronological analysis confirmed it was painted before 1482.

In this artwork, St. Jerome is portrayed in a desert setting, symbolizing penitence. He holds a crucifix and is surrounded by traditional symbols like a lion, a galero (a type of hat), and a Bible. True to Bosch's style, the painting also incorporates unusual elements such as a skeletal pig and a spherical shell, possibly symbolizing the decay of the world. An owl and a smaller owl perched on a branch suggest heresy and the struggle against it. The landscape is expansive, rendered in lush green tones.