The Easel

We can see the true face of Van Eyck Lamb of God after latest restoration

Some may think this piece too technical. For others, it provides a great example of how science aids art history. Van Eyck’s famous Ghent Altarpiece became unexpectedly controversial last year when, at the center of the work, restoration uncovered a human-looking lamb. In fact, three versions of the lamb were found, using advanced X-ray analysis together with “deep neural-network algorithms”. Now art historians are pondering – what was Van Eyck thinking?