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EYCK, Jan van: The Ghent Altarpiece: The Holy Pilgrims

🖼 The Ghent Altarpiece: The Holy Pilgrims, 1427-30
Oil on wood
148.7 × 54.2 cm
Gent, Belgium

Luminous figures in jeweled robes process toward an altar in meticulous oil detail, their garments and flesh rendered with unprecedented realism. This monumental polyptych revolutionized Northern Renaissance painting, establishing oil technique as the dominant medium and influencing European art for centuries.

The story of art
The story of art
E. H. Gombrich
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