The Penitence of Saint Jerome

One continuous landscape extends across three panels containing Christ’s baptism, Jerome’s penitence and Anthony’s temptation. Greens gradually give way to blue in the distance. Changing colour unites several religious stories within a deep, extensive setting.

Christ stands in the river beside a kneeling figure. The small group locates the Baptism within a broad landscape.

Jerome kneels in blue beside the rock. The secluded place accommodates penitence and prayer.

Anthony sits in black with a red book on the right. His story occupies another part of the shared natural setting.

A small red-roofed church stands among fields. Human buildings enter a wider system of roads, water and vegetation.

Distant water and hills fade towards pale blue. Reduced colour intensity conveys distance through atmospheric perspective.

A tall pale crag divides the foreground. Its substantial form connects nearby religious episodes with the extensive distance.

Patinir worked in Antwerp and collaborated with Quinten Massys, who apparently painted figures in some landscapes. This practice reveals landscape becoming a distinct artistic specialisation.