Northern artist active in Venice, circa 1610 - 1620

Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte;
Thence by descent in the family to Mrs. Michel Wittock until recently. 

M. Wittock, "Armoiries inédites caractéristiques du droit d'aînesse chez les Bonaparte sous le Second Empire," in Bruxelles: Musées royaux d'art et d'histoire, 1969.

Small enough to be held in the palm of one's hand, this highly detailed copper records the figure of the penitent Saint Jerome kneeling on a wooden outcrop with an atmospheric rolling landscape beyond that recedes far into the distance.  The artist responsible for this jewel was likely a northern hand active in Venice around the second decade of the 17th century who was aware of the works of artists such as Adam Elsheimer as well as Paul Bril.  This picture was once owned by Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte, whose carte de visite can still be found with this lot, and in whose family this painting descended until recently.