About Illuminare

Cataloguing: Illuminare catalogues Netherlandish illuminated manuscripts in national and international collections. The catalogues are published and made accessible in a databank. They form the basis for further study.

Documenting: Illuminare collects and compiles documentation on illuminated manuscripts, on paper and digitally, in word and image. All aspects of manuscript study are covered.

Studying: Illuminare studies especially Southern Netherlandish manuscript production from around 1350 to 1550: gothic illumination, the so-called pre-Eyckian illumination, Burgundian book illumination and the Ghent-Bruges tradition. The history of conservation, bookbindings, printmaking and 19th-century book illumination are also studied.

Providing accessibility: Illuminare publishes the results of its research in specialist journals, monographs, and the Corpus of Illuminated Manuscripts series. The study centre organizes congresses and study days. Staff members teach various courses at the University of Leuven (KU Leuven). Exhibitions are mounted to reach a wider public.

Internationalizing: Illuminare promotes contacts between Belgian and foreign researchers and forges links with other research centres and libraries.