Episode 412 | Ghent Altarpiece Mistreatment

Today, we will discuss the Ghent Altarpiece, which Jan Van Eyck and Hubert Van Eyck painted. They made this painting during the Northern Renaissance period, and the theme is based on Christianity. Ghent Altarpiece's meaning is the Biblical story of Jesus Christ and his sacrifice. You can see the significance of Christ's sacrifice when they show it with a lamb pouring blood into a chalice. This lamb is a depiction of Christ's sacrifice. In this painting, you can see how the lamb is an essential reference to Christ because next to the altar are angels holding a cross. The angels and cross depict his crucifixion, implying that the lamb in the image is about to get crucified. The Van Eyck brothers used oil paint for the Ghent Altarpiece to try and make the finest of details on this piece of work. For those who don't know what an altarpiece is, it is a work of art that decorated the space above and behind the altar in a Christian church. That is why the Ghent Altarpiece is in St. John the Baptist, now the Cathedral of St. Bavo.