The pervasive influence of religion during the Middle Ages belittled the individual, the value of human life and expression. Fifteenth century Italy was "the place where the notion of the individual was born," in the words of Jacob Burkhardt. Faces in particular, those mirrors of the soul, were depicted more realistically in part as a result of the perfecting of new techniques such as oil painting. This opulent collection includes masterpieces by Van Eyck, Tintoretto, Memling, Holbein, Leonardo, Botticelli, Cranach, Durer, El Greco, Piero della Francesca, Raphael among more than 100 artists represented. Text in English, German, French and Dutch. Cover image is Portrait of Bia de' Medici by Agnolo Bronzino, 1542.