Piety, Nobility and Posterity: Wealth and the Ruin of Nicolas Rolin's Reputation

Abstract

Scholars writing about Jan van Eyck's portrait of Nicolas Rolin in the Rolin Madonna have often described the depiction and the man negatively: while some have maligned Rolin's appearance others have identified him as a hubristic usurper. This essay seeks to provide a more nuanced understanding of Nicolas Rolin's patronage by examining his role as chancellor, his status as a non-noble within the class- conscious and restrictive Burgundian court, and how that has affected our interpretation of the works of art he commissioned and in which he appears