Luke was one of the four gospelwriters who recounted the life of Christ. According to an earlymedieval legend he once drew or painted a portrait of the Virgin Mary. The story may have arisen from the fact that Luke wrote in greater detail than the other three Evangelists about Christ's mother. Whatever the case he was soon adopted as the patron saint of painters whose guilds and corporations often chose an image of Luke painting the Virgin's portrait to decorate their altars.
Flemish art and heritage collections, in great detail