José de Ribera, San Girolamo e l'Angelo del Giudizio,
1626, 262x164cm, Naples, Museo di Capodimonte.
Source : Museo nazionale di Capodimonte, via Wikicommons
public domain
The date 1643 corresponds to the year Ribera painted this picture; it is placed on the jawbone of the skull closest to Saint Jerome's hand. This date is valuable for art history, as it enables the painting to be placed in a series of some forty works by the artist taking up the same subject: the portrait of Saint Jerome.