THE ADORATION OF THE MYSTIC LAMB

One of the greatest cultural treasures of northern Europe,

The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb is a monumental, multi-

panelled work by the first of the great, early Flemish artists,

Jan van Eyck, and his lesser-known brother, Hubrecht.

Completed in 1432, it is exquisitely painted with rich glow-

ing colours and meticulously depicted details. It is also

an expression of the deepest beliefs of Christianity – that

human salvation lies in the sacrifice of Christ, the Lamb

of God. What can be seen today in St-Baafskathedraal is

almost entirely original; only one panel on the lower left is

a modern copy, following the theft of the original in 1934.

This is a remar k able achievement, given the paint ing’s

tumultuous history. It survived Protestant church-wreckers

in 1566; sections of it were taken apart and removed by

French soldiers in 1794; and several of the panels were

sold in 1816. It even had to be rescued from fire in 1822.

Audioguides to the painting (included in the price of the

entry ticket) explain the significance of each of the 12

panels, the largest of which depicts the Mystic Lamb.

GHENT 133

E Design Museum Gent

Jan Breydelstraat 5. Tel (09)

2679999. 
         

         10am–6pm Tue–Sun.

         
         

         & http://www.design museumgent.be
         This excellent decorative arts
         museum occupies an elegant
         18th-century town house. The
         displays are arranged in two
         sections, begin ning at the
         front with a series of lavishly
         fur nished period rooms that
         feature textiles, furniture and
         artifacts from the 17th to the
         19th centuries. At the back,
         an airy, modern extension
         completed in 1992 focusses
         on 20th-century design rang-
         ing from Art Nouveau to
         contemporary works, and
         includes furniture by the
         architects Victor Horta (see
         p80), Marcel Breuer and
         Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

         
         

their patron saint, St Nicholas,
Bishop of Myra (and model
for Santa Claus). The church
is a fine example of the dis-
tinctive and austere style called
Scheldt Gothic. The interior
was once filled with guild
shrines and chapels, until
Protestant church-wreckers
destroyed them in 1566.
Today, it is remarkable for its
pure archi tectural forms, with
soaring columns brightly lit by
high windows. The space is
punc tuated by a massive and
extravagantly Baroque altar
screen, a clarion call to the
Counter-Reformation period;

Views of the Graslei and 16th-century guildhouses along the River Leie

Central panels of the painting, with

the Mystic Lamb as the focal point

P Graslei and Korenlei

These are two embankments

that face each other across

the Tusschen Brugghen, once

Ghent’s main medieval har-

bour. The Graslei, on the

eastern side, possesses a fine

set of guildhouses. Among

them is the sandstone façade

of the guildhouse of the free

boatmen, which is decorated

with finely detailed nautical

scenes. The corn measurers’

guildhouse next door is

adorned by bunches of fruit

and cartouches. The earliest

building in this embankment

is the 12th-century Spijker

(Staple House). This simple

Romanesque struc ture stored

the city’s grain supply for

hundreds of years until a fire

destroyed its interior.

Facing the Graslei across the

water, the gabled buildings of

the Korenlei date from later

centuries, but gracefully com-

plement the architecture of

the Graslei. The views of the

city’s iconic buildings from

St-Michielsbrug, the bridge at

the southern end, crossing the

River Leie, are among the

most beautiful in Ghent.

unusually for such latter-day

alterations, it harmonizes

with the rest of the church’s

interior to exhilarating effect.