Het Belgische Munthuis is pleased to announce their new collaboration with the National Gallery Company. This limited edition series of 24 carat gold ingots features images of some of the most prominent Belgian paintings in the National Gallery, London.
The National Gallery, London is home to some of the world’s most magnificent paintings. There are over 2,300 masterpieces in all major traditions of Western European painting, dating from the thirteenth to the beginning of twentieth century. Together they tell the evolving story of Western European art, as seen through the eyes of some of the most creative minds in art history. Artists such as Cézanne, Titian, Gainsborough, Rembrandt, Monet and Van Gogh, as well as a number of the most well-known Belgian painters.
National Gallery Belgische Meesterwerken Collectie (National Gallery Belgian Masterpieces Collection) includes images of paintings by seven outstanding Belgian artists.
Isabella and Albert, of great importance in Belgian Art
The National Gallery owns portraits of the Archduke Albert and Archduchess Isabella painted in 1615 in Peter Paul Rubens’ studio. They were Belgian sovereigns from 1598 to 1621 and influenced art in the Southern Netherlands, as commissioners and collectors. The pendant portrait of the husband is tied to the pendant portrait of his wife and vice-versa. It is extraordinary that these portraits of the Archduke and Archduchess are still together, after more than 400 years.
The collection also includes paintings by several other Flemish masters. This includes Jan van Eyck, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Anthony van Dyck, a pupil of Rubens, and Rubens’s fellow artist Jacob Jordaens. Masterpieces from earlier painters including Hans Memling and Rogier van der Weyden are also represented in the collection.
The collection has six art-bars total, all gilded in 24 carat gold. The art-bars bear an image of a Belgian masterpiece on the obverse and a special end piece in massive gold.
The collection offers a sample of works of the most revered Belgian painters from the 16th and 17th century, put together after careful and mutual consideration by Het Belgische Munthuis and the National Gallery Company.
About the National Gallery
The Gallery houses one of the greatest collections of paintings in the world.
The collection contains over 2,300 works including many famous works. These include van Eyck’s Arnolfini Portrait, Velázquez’s Rokeby Venus, Turner’s Fighting Temeraire and Van Gogh’s Sunflowers. It represents all major traditions of Western European painting from the artists of late medieval Italy to the French Impressionists.
The Gallery has a commitment to free admission, a central and accessible site, and extended opening hours. This commitment ensures that the widest public possible may enjoy its collection.
About the National Gallery Company
The National Gallery Trust owns the National Gallery Company Limited. The primary purpose of the Company is to generate income for the Trust and the National Gallery. To ensure this, the Company performs a number of commercial operations. The main business is to run the Gallery Shops in store and online at www.nationalgallery.co.uk, produce a range of commercial publications, products and services including licensing images, to both enhance the experience of visitors to the Gallery and effectively reach markets beyond the Gallery.
Every purchase from the shops and restaurants generates valuable revenue for the Gallery. This ensures that future generations are able to enjoy the paintings as we do today.
