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

191 A. The G hent A ltarpiece Introduction In 1432 there were two separate altarpieces in the Vijd Chapel. 1 Some art historians have already been suggesting this duality for a number of years. 2 Our conviction on this point is supported by the differences between the frames of the two registers, but also by other arguments that will be developed in this chapter. We first examined the frames in 1986, when the masterpiece was dismantled and stored in a side chapel of St Bavo’s Cathedral with a view to its being moved to the Villa Chapel. The opportunity to make additional observations and to exchange views with colleagues presented itself during the study, documentation and conservation project supported by the Getty Foundation between April 2010 and June 2011. 3 CHAPTER X MASTERS AND MASTERPIECES Fig. 97. The Ghent Altarpiece 1. The current terms “Ghent Altarpiece” adopted for the Van Eyck brothers’ masterpiece are not comfortable for the explanation we develop in this chapter. This historic appellation is not very old and designates, – a bit summarily one must concede – a single polyptych, which, in our opinion, it became only in the 19th century. We believe this unity is rooted in the progressive reunion, in the 19th and 20th centuries, of two initial altarpieces. For the period prior to the French Revolution, we will therefore refer to the “lower altarpiece” and the “upper altarpiece” and to “the Van Eyck brothers’ altarpieces in Ghent”. An old pars pro toto name for the ensemble is Mystic Lamb, we have adopted this occasionally for the ensemble in its present unified presentation, along with the name “ Ghent Altarpiece ”. We believe that perhaps one day, if the duality of the altarpiece is accepted (and if the two altarpieces were even to be physically slightly dissociated) each altarpiece will receive an appropriate name. The name Mystic Lamb would certain remain for the lower altarpiece. The upper altarpiece could perhaps become the Double Intercession. One can hope also that the in-depth task of cleaning and of removing the overpaintings commenced in 2012 by KIK-IRPA will make it possible to say where Hubert’s work ended and where Jan’s began. This would make it possible to establish the paternity (complete, or partial seeing that Hubert did not complete his work) of each altarpiece. The work undertaken during this decade will certainly produce a terminology better suited to a complex situation, to which the traditional term of “Van Eyck’s Ghent Altarpiece” does not do justice. 2. Dhanens 1980, 378; Verougstraete-Marcq and Van Schoute 1989, 284; Van der Velden 2011, 11. 3. See the website: “Closer to Van Eyck: Rediscovering the Ghent Altarpiece” at http://closertovaneyck. kikirpa.be . The project includes an assessment of the structural condition of the oak panels and the frames of the altarpiece. Glatigny et al. 2010.