'tBosch der eremyten ende eremytinnen, van Aegypten ende Palestinen : met figuren
A 1619 Antwerp book of engravings of desert hermits and hermitesses from Egypt and Palestine, published by Hieronymus Verdussen, with designs by Abraham Bloemaert and plates by Boëce van Bolswert. The pictures show bearded hermits praying kneeling in rocky or wooded wilderness, with open books, rosaries, skulls and a few demons or visions. A designer could take from them the compact figure poses, the dense cross-hatched engraving texture, and the use of trees and light to set a solitary devotional mood.
