The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, the world-famous Ghent altarpiece from Saint Bavo Cathedral, painted by the Van Eyck brothers and finished in 1432, is being restored. It’s a work of many years. Restorers have now discovered that several figures including John the Baptist, the Virgin Mary and the Godhead were given a new lick of paint in the course of the 16th century. Back then, damage was simply painted over, rather than restored. These extra layers are now being removed.
Restoration of the Mystic Lamb reveals brighter colours and more gold and silver leaf!
Colin Clapson
Published:
The restoration of the Ghent altarpiece, the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, has been underway since 2012. Since May of this year, the top, last seven panels, representing heaven are being tackled: John the Baptist, the Virgin Mary, God, angels singing and playing instruments as well as Adam and Eve.
During the restoration work, several areas that had been overpainted were identified. The Van Eyck brothers painted the Adoration of the Mystic, finished in 1432, but the areas that were overpainted were not done by the surviving brother, Jan Van Eyck. ‘That in itself is not strange,’ says Camille De Clercq, head of conservation and restoration at the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage (KIK).
‘What we now know for sure is that the areas were overpainted in the 16th century. This means we were definitely allowed to remove them. Even the Van Eyck brothers sometimes painted over their own work. When we remove painting that has been added later, we have to be 100 per cent sure that this was added afterwards and that it is not another, later addition added by the artist. You don't want that to happen!’
Big difference in colour and nuance
It now appears that the robes of the 3 main characters were painted over at this time. ‘That was normal back then. Today, if there is damage to an important painting, it is retouched. In earlier centuries restorers simply painted over the original to remove the damage. Of course, they did so completely within the existing lines, so it was hardly noticeable. Afterwards, several layers of varnish were also applied on top of that to cover up the treatment.’
Expensive materials chosen to create a heavenly palette
On the paintings of the figures of Adam and Eve the lower, original layer revealed something remarkable: more gold and silver leaf had been used. ‘It’s quite remarkable because this was not found in the earlier restoration of the lower parts of the altarpiece, which represent earthly life. For their depiction of matters celestial the Van Eyck brothers used more richer materials. For sure, this gives the painting an extra dimension.’
Now that restorers are sure these areas were not overpainted by the Van Eycks, the team of restorers is removing these layers of paint. ‘When you see the 2 versions side by side, you notice a big difference. The nuances are so delicate and so particular to Van Eyck's palette. The colours are much more intense. It's no coincidence that the brothers were admired so vehemently across the known world. This is clearly world heritage.’