Adoration of the Lamb

A polyptych altarpiece painted for the cathedral of St Bavo, in Ghent, by the Flemish artists Hubert and Jan van Eyck in 1432. With 20 separate panels, and outer wings that close over the central images, it is one of the greatest works of Flemish art. Its subject matter is complex. The lower register of the interior features The Adoration of the Lamb of God by the Elect; the upper register shows God the Father enthroned between the Virgin and St John the Baptist, angels, and Adam and Eve.

On the lowest level of the exterior, Jodocus Vyd and his wife, the patrons of the altarpiece, kneel in prayer before St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist. Over these figures is an Annunciation, and, at the top, pictures of the prophets and sibyls who foresaw the Virgin Birth.

Each of the polyptych's 20 panels has the same high finish and extraordinary attention to detail. The relative contributions of the two brothers van Eyck remain controversial, though Jan is thought to have painted most of the altarpiece.