This heavily weathered polychrome limestone statue represents Saint Jerome, one of the four Latin Fathers of the Church, traditionally depicted as a hermit or penitent in the wilderness. The saint is shown bearded, wearing a rough garment of animal hide, and holding a book, symbol of his translation of the Bible into Latin (the Vulgate), and a lion, his customary attribute, visible crouched at his feet.

Despite the extensive losses to the surface polychromy and localized damage (notably to the torso and right shoulder), traces of original pigmentation remain, suggesting that the figure was once vividly coloured, with the cloak rendered in earthy reds and ochres.

The carving is provincial but expressive, combining an austere treatment of anatomy with a still-Gothic facial type. The elongated proportions and the stylised handling of drapery indicate a transitional style between the late Gothic and early Renaissance, consistent with the late 15th or early 16th century, a period when devotional statuary in the Loire region retained conservative forms while gradually incorporating Renaissance naturalism.

Although the saint’s attributes identify him unambiguously as Jerome, the rustic handling and scale suggest this sculpture was intended for a parish setting rather than a monastic or cathedral context. It likely formed part of a now-lost ensemble of saints within the church of Saint-Blaise.