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Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original fileafter Hendrick Goltzius
The hermit saint is shown in profile, hunched over a religious text and ignoring a woman who stands behind his desk holding a small jar. The woman's true nature is revealed by the subtle horns protruding from her headdress, while the saint's traditional attributes, a pig and a bell, appear in the background. The scene is set within a stark, stone architectural space that emphasizes the saint's isolation and asceticism.
This work explores the themes of spiritual discernment and the struggle against demonic illusion, which were central to both Christian asceticism and the broader Northern European mystical tradition. It reflects the Mannerist interest in psychological tension and the 'uncanny' through the depiction of a shape-shifting demon.
HG Fe.
Jacobus de Voragine
The 'Golden Legend' by de Voragine is the primary source for the hagiographic details of St. Anthony's temptations and his traditional attributes.
Athanasius of Alexandria
Author of the 'Life of Saint Anthony', the foundational text for the saint's ascetic practices and his battles with demonic visions.
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
Engraving
religious
Digital Source
Wikimedia Commons · CC0
http://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.438206
Creative Commons Zero, Public Domain Dedication
4366 × 6450 px
bfcb61ed26d1fbdebee0bfbfffe3ff774f7786e9
December 20, 2019
March 23, 2026
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 1, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.