Miraflores Altarpiece

Rogier van der Weyden's Miraflores Altarpiece from around 1443-1445 was painted for the Carthusian charterhouse of Miraflores near Burgos, Spain — a commission that reflects the internationalization of Flemish painting through the commercial connections between Bruges and the Iberian Peninsula. The Miraflores charterhouse was founded by Juan II of Castile, and the altarpiece's scenes of the Virgin and Christ depicted in arched niches that suggest carved stone created the visual effect of a polychrome sculptured retablo of the type familiar in Spanish churches. The altarpiece's Spanish destination made it foundational to the development of Hispano-Flemish painting style.

Rogier integrates painted architectural frames with the narrative scenes, using precise trompe-l'oeil stonework effects and his characteristic angular figure style with deep, saturated reds and blues.