(active in mid 15th century)

First page of the Chroniques de Hainaut 1448 Opaque paint, gold, and pen and ink on parchment, 44 x 31 cm Bibliothèque Royal de Belgique, Brussels

Although Duke Philip the Good often visited Brussels, there is no record of his ever having ordered a religious painting from Rogier van der Weyden. On the other hand, he did commission two portraits of himself from the artist. The originals are not extant, but have come down to us in many copies, so that they must in a certain sense have been official portraits of the duke. However, the original of one work done for Philip by Rogier's own hand is extant; surprisingly, this is not a panel painting but a miniature. It adorns the first page of the first volume of a French translation of the Hainault Chronicle, one of three extremely magnificent historical works commissioned by the duke in 1446 with a view to legitimising his claims to power and territory.

Rogier's miniature was probably painted at the beginning of 1448, when the text had been written out by scribes. As an introductory picture showing the chronicle being presented to the duke, it is the most important miniature in the work, and marks the beginning of a great period in Flemish illumination, one that was to last into the next century. The other miniatures in the Hainault Chronicle, amounting to 39 in all in the first volume, are of a very different character from the first picture, and even those illustrations strongly influenced by Rogier's style in other ducal chronicles do not achieve his quality. Rogier's miniature, the only one by his hand known to us, stands alone as one of the finest works of Flemish illumination.

It was not unusual for 15th-century panel painters to turn to book illumination at times, and although there is no documentary evidence that Rogier himself painted this miniature, its style admits little doubt of his authorship. In contrast to older traditions, and unlike the other illustrations in the chronicle, its concept is entirely that of a panel painting.

The manuscript is written out in a large, clear hand. The borders consist of dense tendrils of acanthus, and on the first page is the coats-of-arms of all Philip's territories, alternating with the flints and steels of the Golden Fleece, giving off sparks. Above are the duke's coat-of-arms and his motto.

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Author: MINIATURIST, Flemish Title: First page of the Chroniques de Hainaut Time-line: 1401-1450 School: Flemish Form: illumination