Research—The Arnolfini Portrait

Van Eyck as Witness to the Marriage Ceremony

The artist's presence in the scene extends beyond his role as painter, as evidenced by the famous inscription within The Arnolfini Portrait that declares "Johannes de Eyck fuit hic"—Johannes de Eyck was here. This signature-like declaration suggests that Van Eyck positioned himself not merely as the creator of the artwork, but as an actual witness to the matrimonial ceremony being depicted. His presence would have served a dual purpose: documenting the event through his artistic skill while potentially fulfilling the role of a witness to the marriage contract being formed.

Artist	Jan van Eyck
Year	1434
Medium	Oil on oak panel of 3 vertical boards
Dimensions	82.2 cm × 60 cm (32.4 in × 23.6 in); panel 84.5 cm × 62.5 cm (33.3 in × 24.6 in)
Location	National Gallery, London

Marriage Procedures in Fifteenth-Century Northern Europe

Marriage in the fifteenth century was understood through multiple lenses—as a social contract, a sacrament, and a momentous event governed by both secular customs and theological doctrine. According to Erwin Panofsky's interpretation, before the Council of Trent established stricter regulations in 1563, couples could enter into legitimate matrimony through the simple act of mutual consent, expressed through specific words and gestures. The essential element was the exchange of marital vows, known as "fides," which could occur anywhere and at any time without requiring the presence of a priest or official witnesses.

Jan Baptist Bedaux offers a different perspective, emphasizing the contractual nature of marriage under canon law, which by this period had given the Church monopolistic control over marriage laws. Bedaux explains that the joining of hands (iunctio) depicted in the painting evolved from the ancient "traditio puellae," where the bride's guardian would place her hand in the groom's - a gesture later adopted by priests and eventually performed by the couples themselves. From the thirteenth century onward, this hand-joining served dual purposes: during betrothal, it signified a promise to marry (fides pactionis), while in the actual marriage ceremony, it represented the promise of marital faith (fides conjugii).

The scholars disagree on the exact ritual requirements. While Panofsky argues that the "dextrarum iunctio" (joining of right hands) was indispensable for a legitimate sacramental marriage, Bedaux contests this, noting that canon law and theological dogma actually required only a verbal declaration of consensus—the physical gestures, while customary, were not strictly necessary for validity. Bedaux points to certain dioceses of Belgium and northern France where couples would join hands while raising the other hand in an oath-like gesture after the priest proclaimed "Levez la main aux saints" (Raise your hand to the saints), which may explain the raised hand in Van Eyck's painting. However, Bedaux notes that Panofsky's term "fides levata" cannot be substantiated by documentary evidence.

The Compositional Significance of the Left-Hand Gesture

The bridegroom's use of his left hand has generated considerable scholarly debate with multiple competing theories. Panofsky's explanation maintains that Van Eyck made this unconventional choice for purely aesthetic reasons—to avoid awkward overlapping of arms and achieve better compositional balance. This artistic liberty prioritized visual harmony over strict adherence to ceremonial accuracy.

Bedaux discusses Peter Schabacker's contrasting theory, which suggests the left-handed gesture indicates a morganatic marriage—a union between partners of unequal social rank where the wife and children would not inherit the husband's status or property. In such ceremonies, the left-handed joining specifically signified this inequality. However, as Bedaux notes, this interpretation creates problems for the traditional identification of the couple as Giovanni Arnolfini and Jeanne de Cename, who were of equal social standing. Elisabeth Dhanens attempted to resolve this by proposing the man might be Michele Arnolfini (Giovanni's brother) instead, whose circumstances could have warranted a morganatic union.

Bedaux presents yet another perspective, observing that left-handed gestures appear quite frequently in medieval miniature paintings and were part of marriages contracted under ancient secular law codifications that did not preclude subsequent church ceremonies. He provides supporting evidence from Froissart's Chroniques showing the marriage between Richard II of England and Isabella of France—clearly equals in rank—using the left-handed gesture, definitively proving that not every left-handed joining indicated a morganatic marriage. This evidence suggests the left-hand usage might have been more common and less symbolically charged than either Panofsky or Schabacker proposed, potentially representing simply an accepted variant of the marriage gesture rather than carrying specific compositional or legal significance.