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Abstract:

The Belgian city of Ghent is worldly known because of the Altarpiece ‘The Mystic Lamb’ by the brothers Jan and Hubert Van Eyck (15th century). On the painting, Eve holds the forbidden fruit of the Eden Paradise but it was an enigma what this fruit was. The authors show the fruit is not an apple, an etrog, a grape, a fig, nor a pomegranate, but a special kind of lemon. There are historical and cultural indications pointing towards the exact species it might have been. Note even Michiel Coxcie, who was assigned by the authorities of his time of the 16th century to make an official copy, ignored what it was and painted an apple. The lemon the Van Eycks painted has more or less died out because of the many cross-overs, but the authors did find similar species.