St Jerome, one of the four Latin Fathers of the Church, is shown bust-length, gazing upwards, with a long beard. Frequently depicted in paintings in penitence or practising asceticism, he here holds a stone with which to beat his breast. The saint wears a red robe, suggesting that this may be the painting of 'St. Jerom by ditto Guido', bought by Charles II from Frizell in 1662 and placed in Paradise at Hampton Court, which was described as being '…in a red garment.' The style of the painting is vaguely related to the style of Reni, but the composition is not based on any known Reni treatment of St Jerome.