Notes

The solemnity of the scene is heightened by the Virgin's ample red cloak, trimmed with a rich border of braid, pearls and precious stones.

The cloak also bears an embroidered inscription, in gold, taken from the Christian liturgy of Matins. The prayers focus on the magnificence of Creation, a theme reflected in the painted background and the globe held by the Infant Jesus, represented here as Christ the Creator.

The Virgin is glorified by the Latin words elevata and exaltata. Their meaning is symbolized by her position in the painting, raised above the surrounding landscape, in the loggia of a fortified palace. The Virgin's hieratic pose, and the way in which she presents the Infant Jesus, reflect traditional representations of the Virgin of Wisdom

- a familiar iconographical scheme in Romanesque art. She seems to be looking at the cross on top of the globe, prefiguring her son's suffering and crucifixion.

An angel in flight holds an ornate crown above the Virgin's head, a reference to her coronation in the heavenly city of Jerusalem. The angel's rainbow-colored wings symbolize a link between Earth and Heaven, the pact established between man and God.

The chubby, naked figure of the Infant Jesus sits on a small piece of white linen
- a reference to his funeral shroud - holding a crystal globe surmounted by an elaborately - wrought gold cross. The globe symbolizes Christ's earthly power, and the cross, his spiritual dominion. The crystal symbolizes Mary's virginity.

The Infant Jesus extends his right hand toward chancellor Rolin in a gesture of blessing, but does not seem to be looking at him directly. Van Eyck has altered this part of the picture, probably at the request of his patron : the under-drawing, revealed using infra-red reflectography, shows that Jesus's arm was originally pointed downward toward the floor.