Saint Jerome

This impressively bearded figure is a fourth-century saint, Jerome, one of the Fathers of the Christian Church. He has several books, symbolising his extensive writings, including the first official translation of the Bible into Latin. He also holds a stone - he spent several years living as a hermit in the desert, and used to beat his chest with a stone to distract his mind from sinful thoughts.

A red hat held on by a string hangs down the saint's back. Its tassel is visible through his beard. Late in his life Jerome became secretary to the Pope, so he is often shown with the red robes and hat of a cardinal (as in Saint Jerome by Carlo Crivelli) although this office did not exist in his lifetime. Jerome was a popular saint in the medieval period, especially with religious orders. He was seen as a role model for living an ascetic life - he renounced worldly riches and pleasure - and for his scholarly study of the Bible.

This painting formed part of the upper tier of a large polyptych (multi-panelled altarpiece). It was painted between about 1456 and 1461 by Giorgio Schiavone for the funerary chapel of the wealthy Roberti family in the church of San Nicolò in Padua.

Credit: Bought, 1860