Frames and supports in 15th and 16th-century Southern Netherlandish painting

CHAPTER V 104 Fig. 57.  a. Hinges of the Ghent Altarpiece , attached to the face of the frame (Van Eyck, upper altarpiece, Ghent, St Bavo’s Cathedral, wing closed). b. The small barrel hinges, with an eye on one blade fitting over a pin on the other blade, and with the blades recessed at an angle in the thickness of the frame, were not enough for carrying the heavy wings by Melchior Broederlam and Jacques de Baerze (Dijon, Museum of Fine Arts, inv. no. CA 1420 A). Until recently, two crutches moving along two curved metal rails embedded in the pavement, helped carry the weight of the wings. These have now been replaced by fixed props. c. The blade is flared, nailed into a recess cut into one lateral side of the frame. The outer edge of the stile is cut back to accommodate the node of the hinge and to permit the movement of the hinge pin. Anonymous, Rest during the Flight to Egypt , 15th century (Private Collection). d. Placing the node in a hollowed notch leaves the elements flush on opening, with no gap between them. Antwerp Anonymous (after Pieter Coecke van Aelst), Triptych of the Adoration of the Magi , c. 1520 (Ghent, CM , no. 2 ). e-f. Blades nailed to the lateral sides, which are not recessed; nor is the edge of the frame notched to take the node of the hinge. On opening, this leaves a gap between the wings and the central panel. Anonymous, Triptych with Virgin and Child , 15th century (Leuven, M-Museum, inv. no. S/341/O). g. Slot cut obliquely into the frame to take the hinge blade. Anonymous, Genealogy of St Francis , 15th century (Tournai, MFA , no. 1 ). h. A nail, on the front of the frame serves to fix the hinge. Only the node of the hinge is visible. Alincbroot Triptych (Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado). i. Hinge blades fitted to the top and bottom of the frames, joined by a flat node (the only such case observed). Goossen van der Weyden (attributed to), Triptych of the Virgin and Child , late 15th century (Tournai, MFA , no. 2 ). j. In this system, prefiguring the Baroque era, the wing is attached by an angled bracket to a colonnette that is part of a carved Renaissance or pre-Baroque frame. The movement of the wing causes the colonnette to turn on a metal axis. Here with the wings closed. Anonymous, Triptych with the Lamentation of Christ and Donors (Leuven, M-Museum, inv. no. S/27/O). a e f i j g h b c d