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Original filePiamon Diocles als kluizenaar
About This Work
An elderly hermit pulls a heavy rope to ring a large bell attached to his wooden dwelling. To his right, a small open chapel contains an altar with a chalice and a visible angelic figure, while the background reveals a bustling waterway with other monks in small boats and a distant city skyline. The scene captures the balance between the solitary life of the 'Desert Fathers' and their communal religious duties.
Piamon was one of the fourth-century Egyptian Desert Fathers whose lives were celebrated in late 16th-century prints as models of the contemplative life. This series by the Sadeler family reflects the era's mystical interest in the 'theology of solitude,' which viewed withdrawal from the world as a prerequisite for divine vision and inner transformation.
Inscriptions
In nemore inculto, rigidi prope litora ponti, Sacrifici partes officiosus agens, Distribuit socijs sacra ter veneranda PIAMON, Quo docuit Christus distribuenda modo. 28
Translation
In the uncultivated grove, near the shores of the rigid sea, Performing the dutiful role of a priest, PIAMON distributes to his companions the thrice-venerable sacraments, In the manner which Christ taught they should be distributed. 28
Connected Texts
Historia Monachorum in Aegypto
This text provides the primary biographical account of Piamon and other Egyptian hermits depicted in this engraving series.
Collections
Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
height 168 mm x width 206 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.