Attributed to Willem Drost (Amsterdam 1633-1659 Venice)

This drawing has previously been attributed to Rembrandt, but Peter Schatborn has suggested that it should be given to Willem Drost, noting that the precise rendering of the hands, with every finger individually represented, and the strong parallel hatchings, noticeable in Saint Jerome's habit, are characteristic of the artist's drawings (see, for example, W. Sumowski, Drawings of the Rembrandt School, New York, 1980, III, nos. 550x and 567xx). Furthermore the loose lines indicating the background can be compared to a number of Drost's drawings (see W. Sumowski, op. cit., nos. 550x, 551x, 555x).