A Short History of the Middle Ages Fourth Edition

Plate 8.9: Rogier van der Weyden, Columba Altarpiece (1450s). Depicting three standard scenes from
Christ’s childhood—the Annunciation, the Adoration of the Magi, and the Presentation in the Temple—the
Columba Altarpiece subtly introduces new themes alongside the old. For example, Christ’s death is
suggested by the crucifix above Mary in the central panel, while the present time (the fifteenth century) is
suggested by the cityscape in the background, which probably represents Cologne, the native city of the
man who commissioned the altar and the proud home of the relics of the Magi.

The emphasis on the natural details of the moment was equally striking in secular

paintings from the Netherlands. In Man in a Red Turban (see Plate 8.10) by Jan van

Eyck (c.1390–1441), we even see the stubble of the man’s beard. Yet this entirely

secular theme—a man in stylish red headgear (evidence of the Turkish allure)—is

infused with a quiet inner light that endows its subject with a kind of

otherworldliness.