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Original fileMacarius van Alexandrië als kluizenaar
About This Work
An elderly, bearded hermit sits at the foot of a tree, resting near his travel gourd and staff while observing a miraculous scene in a forest clearing. In the background, two figures clad in foliage stand among a gathering of beasts—including a unicorn, an elephant, a lion, and a stag—all peacefully drinking from a stream. The dense, detailed engraving emphasizes the solitude and the sacred, primeval nature of the wilderness.
This work belongs to the 'Solitudo Sive Vitae Patrum Eremicolarum' series, which reflects the late Renaissance fascination with the Desert Fathers as models of asceticism and mystical contemplation. The presence of the unicorn and the 'wild men' (homines sylvestres) connects the spiritual path of the hermit to the idea of regaining a lost, Edenic state of harmony with the natural and supernatural worlds.
Inscriptions
Alter Alexandrinus erat MACHARIVS: illi Sanctorum studio discere gesta fuit. Atq. duos reperit vitrei prope fluminis undam Inter siluas tres tuto habitare feras.
Translation
Macarius was another Alexandrian: for him it was a study to learn the deeds of the Saints. And near the waves of the glassy river he found two wild beasts living safely among the woods.
Connected Texts
Vitae Patrum (The Lives of the Fathers)
This print illustrates a narrative from this foundational hagiographic collection, which served as a primary source for the ascetic and mystical traditions in Western Christendom.
Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
height 170 mm x width 210 mm
religious
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 2, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.