Examples of disease as shown in artworks will be examined, from the medical and surgical point of view as well as the historical and artistic ones, particularly visual loss as portrayed by artists from pre-historic times. The special mystery in the story contained within Van Eyck's The Virgin with The Canon (1436) will then be discussed, providing a fascinating religious, legal, medical and sociological explanation for the Canon's blindness and contemporary attitudes towards it.

The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: http://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/van-eycks-the-virgin-with-the-canon-visual-disability-and-societal-attitudes-as-depicted-in-the-northern-renaissance

Gresham College has been giving free public lectures since 1597. This tradition continues today with all of our five or so public lectures a week being made available for free download from our website. There are currently over 1,900 lectures free to access or download from the website.

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